I Want To Join Team Rocket
by Crazy Amazing
Summary: Daphne only wanted to join Team Rocket. She didn't think they'd put her in the peewee training school. As she and her partner work through the program, they experience things that make them change the way they see the world, themselves - and each other.
1. An Adventure Begins

**Note: I plan on making this fairly long, so please be patient! Also, I have exams coming up so be prepared for irregular updates ;P That said (typed?), enjoy the first chapter of my new story!  
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An Adventure Begins

_Steal Pokémon for profit. Exploit Pokémon for profit. All Pokémon exist for the glory of Team Rocket._

It wasn't the most motivational slogan, or a clever one at that. Daphne liked that it was honest and didn't try to make the organisation seem like something it wasn't. It was written on shiny white plastic above a desk in a building civilians weren't normally allowed to be in. Daphne had had to bribe the security guard at the front entrance into letting her into the building, using a box of six doughnuts. After much deliberating, the guard had agreed.

Now she was inside, Daphne's eyes surveyed everything: the spotlessly waxed floor; the pale blue walls with framed pictures of various Pokémon in captivity; the elevator at the far end of the waiting area that advertised its seventeen floors. Daphne sniffed and she was almost certain she could smell the strong scent of Moomoo Milk, which she found weird.

A woman who looked to be in her early forties was sitting behind the front desk, chatting easily on the telephone. Daphne went over to her and leaned on the desk, attempting to intimidate the woman into hanging up the phone. Much to Daphne's annoyance, the woman rolled her eyes and swivelled around on her chair, so her back was to Daphne. Irritated – but not surprised – by the woman's rudeness, Daphne very immaturely stuck her tongue out at the woman's back. Daphne's eyes drifted up towards the clock on the wall near the woman. She couldn't take too long with her phone call, could she?

Twenty minutes later, Daphne had had enough of waiting around. She took matters into her own hands and quietly slipped off to the elevator. Daphne pushed the button to call the lift and it lit up red. While she waited for it to arrive, Daphne kept a wary eye on the woman behind the desk: she didn't want to get caught in the act.

The lift arrived with a loud and cheery 'ding!' which the woman was oblivious to. As quick as she could, Daphne jumped inside and selected a floor. The doors closed just as the woman was getting off the phone and she didn't quite manage to see Daphne hitching a ride in the lift. Daphne's stomach lurched dangerously as the elevator shot upwards, surprising Daphne with the sheer speed of it. It stopped on the seventeenth floor and Daphne fell out, woozy from her ride. She clutched her stomach and waited until her head stopped spinning before she looked around her. Daphne gasped; she was in _Giovanni's office._ He appeared startled by her arrival but maintained his superior composure. Daphne straightened the black hat on her head and stepped forward bravely. In Giovanni's office, everything looked like it had been bought that very day. The carpet was lush and looked like no-one had walked on it before, books appeared to be un-opened. A Persian lay peacefully in a basket near Giovanni's desk.

"How can I help you, child?" sneered Giovanni. Daphne wasn't intimidated by his attitude; she was well aware that she was only fourteen. She didn't expect him to be any nicer to her than that. Daphne cleared her throat loudly.

"I want to join Team Rocket." It took Giovanni a few seconds to react. Then he stared Daphne straight in her eyes and chuckled. Daphne hadn't anticipated that sort of reaction.

"You, join Team Rocket? Don't make me laugh kid. Get out of my office before I tell security to call your parents," said Giovanni coldly. Daphne narrowed her eyes at him.

"I know you let people as young as me join your organisation and I think–"

"That was last month," Giovanni cut her off. "There was a chance for you to sign up then and I guess it's your loss you missed the deadline. I'm a busy man so if you wouldn't mind seeing yourself out..." Giovanni gestured for Daphne to leave. It was too bad for him that she was a stubborn girl. Daphne banged her palms down on his wooden desk and glared at him.

"Let me join Team Rocket," said Daphne, slowly and deliberately.

"You're beginning to irritate me," stated Giovanni.

"I won't leave until you let me join," said Daphne, standing up straight once more. Giovanni didn't much like giving in to other peoples demands – especially a little girl's – so he twisted it in his favour. _That way_, he reasoned, _it's not as if I lost_. He forced a heavy sigh.

"I'll allow you to join our peewee training team, how's that?" Giovanni smiled nastily. Daphne agreed to it, although she thought 'peewee' didn't sound as if it was taken seriously among the Team Rocket members. She was just glad to have gotten somewhere. Giovanni made a phone call and ordered a Rocket grunt to get to his office _instantly_. Three seconds later, a young man burst through a side door in the office, panting heavily. Daphne took in the stairs behind him and realized he had run up them. She wondered what floor he had come from.

"Take this child to the peewee training department. I also want a hot cup of black coffee, a full report of our progress in Vermillion City and five Dragonites." Giovanni waved his hand, dismissing them both. The Rocket grunt began to bow, thought better of it, and tried to make out he had dropped something on the floor. His Pokéballs spilled out of his open bag and on to the floor and he gathered them back up as fast as he could. Daphne met Giovanni's eyes and it was as if they were thinking the same thing. _What an idiot._

When the grunt had finally pulled him self together, he lead Daphne through the door he had just entered and they descended the stairs in silence. Their footsteps echoed around them, the sound bouncing off the stone walls. After walking down four flights of stairs, the Rocket grunt opened a door and went through it. Daphne followed, now decidedly bored. They walked through a back room that had nothing interesting in it expect for a few cardboard boxes and empty Pokéballs. The door at the end of the room led to an open platform on the side of the building. The wind whipped around them, causing Daphne's long green hair to fly in her face. The Rocket grunt's hat flew off before he could catch it and Daphne tried not to laugh. The grunt turned to her and pointed to a Charizard sleeping against the side of the building.

"Wake it up and it will take you to the peewee training school," he said, and promptly left Daphne on the roof. She tried to go after him but found that he had locked the door they had just come through from the inside. Daphne cursed him under her breath. She wasn't stupid; she knew how temperamental Pokémon could get when woken from their sleep before they were ready. However, Daphne couldn't see any other way of getting down from the ledge as she couldn't go back and it was very high up. Gritting her teeth, Daphne cautiously made her way over to the Charizard.

It was a lot bigger this close up. As it snored gently, little puffs of fire emitted from its mouth. It didn't exactly look inviting. This particular Charizard had numerous scars all over its body and was missing part of its right ear – Daphne decided it was most definitely a fighter. It made her all the more nervous. Tentatively, Daphne prodded the Charizard with her finger. It twitched...but otherwise nothing else happened. Daphne poked it harder and the Charizard lifted a hand to sleepily swat her away. Daphne knew she was going to have to take a risk. Summoning all of her strength, Daphne shoved the Charizard in its stomach. The Charizard woke with a start, and its eyes focused on Daphne. It roared angrily at her and got to its feet. Clouds of black smoke billowed out of its nose and mouth. Daphne took a step back.

"You need to take me to the...peewee training school," said Daphne. It embarrassed her to say the word 'peewee', even to a Pokémon. The Charizard looked fiercely at Daphne and she felt compelled to amend herself.

"Uh...please?" To Daphne's absolute astonishment, the Charizard's frown melted to make way for a smile. It bent down so she could climb on its back and she sat with its neck between her legs. She gripped on to its horns and without warning, the Charizard took off.

"!" In some ways, it was worse than the elevator. It was faster, shakier and it wasn't only going in one direction. But once Daphne got used to it and the feeling she was about to throw up passed, she found she quite enjoyed the ride. The Charizard soared through the sky, flying above and below the clouds. Daphne chanced a look at the ground and discovered that she could see the entire island of Kanto. It was amazing. Everything looked so green; she could hardly even see the buildings. After a time she knew they must have passed the house where she had grown up and she muttered 'good riddance'. She never wanted to go back there.

The Charizard flew over Kanto and was soon above the ocean. Having never been away from Kanto before, Daphne immediately had no idea where she was headed to. It gave her a sense of excitement: leaving home and travelling to somewhere she had never been before. It was almost like an adventure. A flock of Wingull eyed the Charizard and Daphne suspiciously but left them alone when the Charizard carelessly blew thick smoke in their direction.

Daphne felt her stomach flip as the Charizard began its hasty descent. She looked over the Charizard's head and panicked when she only saw the sea below them. Daphne yelled at the Charizard to pull up before they both drowned to death but the Charizard ignored her. As they got closer and closer, Daphne came to realize that there was a small island far below and that the Charizard had been planning on landing there. Feeling stupid, Daphne meekly apologised to the Charizard who took no notice of her either way. The ground soon came rushing up to meet them both and the Charizard landed softly and expertly on the grass. Daphne slid off of the Charizard's back and turned to it.

"Thanks for the ride," she said. The Charizard bowed its head slightly before flapping its wings and flying off again, leaving Daphne to fend for herself. Daphne turned around and was face to face with the tallest iron gate she had ever seen. Behind it was a building three times the size of her school back in Kanto, and ten times flashier. Daphne noticed there was a speaker box built into the brick wall next to the gate and she pressed the buzzer. A voice crackled through.

"Yes? Yes? Well, who is it?!" the voice demanded.

"D-Daphne Davies," stuttered Daphne, a little shaken by the aggressive tone of voice. "I'm a new student."

"What took you so long to reply! Jeez, the youth today...Stand back then!" the voice barked. Daphne stumbled backwards as the tall iron gates opened automatically in front of her. A middle-aged short man came scurrying out of the school, a deep frown set on his face.

"Daphne?" Daphne recognised his voice as the one from the speaker, and nodded. He grabbed her wrist and with surprising strength, considering his size, pulled her behind him. He took her on a tour of the school, talking nonstop in a bored voice.

"This is the front office...Over there are the classrooms, but you won't spend a lot of time in there...Through those double doors is out of bounds unless you have written permission from at least two coaches...This is the dining hall...Here's the recreation room...The dojo...Out there is the assault course...And finally, the student dormitories. Since its Sunday everyone is in their rooms at this time. You're very lucky since someone dropped out just this morning...And so here's your room. You'll find some clothes in the drawers and your room mate will explain the rules to you." The short man left quickly, slamming the door behind him. Daphne blinked at her new room. If she was honest, her old one was better in so many ways: it was tidier, the bed sheets actually matched, there wasn't a horrible draft, there was a nice(ish) rug and cheerful posters on the wall. _At least they gave me clothes_. The room was on the small side with only the basics: two beds, two chests of drawers, one bedside table where a small alarm clock sat and a window above the bedside table. There was a door to the far left that led to the en suite bathroom. Daphne tried to have a look at it but it was locked. She realized her room mate was probably in there. Daphne flopped herself on her bed – she knew it was hers because her room mate's was cluttered with random keepsakes and knick knacks.

Daphne wondered what kind of person her room mate was. Was she stubborn, like Daphne? Did she have long or short hair? What region was she from? Why did she want to join Team Rocket? Daphne sat up when she heard the door for the bathroom being opened. Her questions were about to be answered. The door opened and Daphne saw that her new room mate was...

"Oh!"


	2. Meeting and Greeting

Meeting and Greeting

"Hey," the boy smiled at Daphne. "You must be my new room mate. I'm Conan." Daphne gaped at him. She hadn't even entertained the idea that her room mate could be a boy. He had dark purple hair that was short and spiky and was wearing red pyjamas.

"But you're a _**boy**_!" protested Daphne in horror. There was no way she could share a room with a boy. There had to be some sort of law against it, mustn't there? For her sake, Daphne hoped there was. Conan laughed, but not in a cruel way. He swept the things on his bed to the side and sat down, carefully studying Daphne, who was silently freaking out. Her heart beat wildly while Conan gazed at her. It suddenly struck Daphne what a long way away from home she was, and the first signs of fear were beginning to creep up on her. She fiercely crushed them down though, and forced herself to think about the situation logically. There had to be a reason why her room mate was male.

"Everyone is roomed with the opposite sex. They become team mates, and are given one Pokémon between them. My last partner was a girl called Rachel and we had a Paras together. She dropped out and was really attached to Paras so she took him with her. They're going to assign us a new Pokémon in the morning," explained Conan. Daphne nodded in understanding – things were becoming clearer to her.

"Sorry, I just remembered I didn't ask for your name!" said Conan apologetically.

"It's Daphne."

"Nice to meet you, Daphne," smiled Conan. They shook hands formally and Daphne sat opposite Conan on her own bed. He began to explain how things worked in the school.

There were seven groups: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet. Daphne and Conan were in Red. They woke up every weekday at seven to get to the dining hall for seven thirty. They would eat breakfast while being briefed at the same time about their mission for the day. Breakfast would end at eight o'clock where they would retreat to their classrooms and gather the equipment they might need for the day. Then they were dismissed from campus until they completed their mission – they weren't allowed to come back until they did. Dinner was at whatever time they made it back and they had to be in their rooms by eight. On the weekend they might have to do some additional training if their coach thought they needed it but if not, they were free to do what they liked. Most people went to the recreation room and chilled out there.

Once Conan had explained all that to Daphne, she decided to get ready for bed. In her drawers she found pyjamas just the same as Conan's. She took them – along with some clean underwear – with her to the bathroom and proceeded to have a shower. She brushed her teeth, got changed and by the time she went back to her bed Conan was already asleep. Daphne saw that he was clutching a small photograph and when she gently prised it out of his hand, discovered that it was of a little girl around the age of eight or nine. She looked just like Conan except for the fact that she was wearing glasses and had her hair in bunches. Daphne guessed that she was Conan's sister. She looked really cute and Daphne found herself wondering how Conan could have left her for Team Rocket.

As carefully as she could, Daphne replaced the photo and got under her bed covers. She would have to ask Conan in the morning about the photograph. Daphne stared up at the ceiling for a while, just thinking about all that had happened in her life so far. Her mum's death, her dad's addiction, her friend's rejection. Then she dropped out of school, got in trouble with the law a few times and eventually saw the old flyer advertising for young Team Rocket recruits. A young woman with long magenta hair had caught her looking at it and approached her. She had been in Team Rocket uniform and Daphne knew she should have been scared – but she wasn't. Daphne couldn't remember everything the woman had said but the one thing that stuck in her mind was '_Team Rocket may be a group of criminals, but that doesn't mean we don't know how to work as a team. We never double cross each other – unless we have to, of course.'_

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The next day, Daphne and Conan were woken up at 7am by a loud alarm clock, screeching the sound of a Growlithe. Annoyed and groggy, Daphne whacked the clock's 'off' button and dragged her body out of bed. Conan was used to early starts and graciously allowed Daphne to be first in the bathroom. Daphne found out that the clothes provided for her were all the same outfit: a black and white striped t-shirt, dark purple dungarees shorts and matching purple knee-high boots with long black thigh-high socks to complete the look. Conan also had duplicates of his outfit, which was a black shirt with a dark green design, dark green trousers and matching fingerless gloves. Daphne noticed that his trainers were the only thing not matching – they were black with a yellow lightning strike on the side – and Conan explained they were his from his home. This information persuaded Daphne to keep her black hat on, as there didn't seem to be any punishments for customising the clothes they gave you.

On their way to the dining hall, Daphne attempted to quiz Conan about the photograph but she ended up forgetting all about it in the hustle and bustle that was other students all trying to get to the dining hall without stopping for anyone. When they eventually arrived at their destination, Daphne took in the enormous size of the dining hall. She had already seen it yesterday but that was when it was empty. Now it was overflowing with teenagers wolfing down their breakfast, talking loudly and animatedly or playing with their Pokémon. Conan led Daphne to their table, with the other Red members. As she made her way to an empty chair, Daphne accidently bumped into a girl carrying a Zubat, causing the girl to drop it. The Zubat became angered at the treatment it had just been subjected to, hissed viciously at the girl and flew away quickly. The other girl's cheeks turned as red as her fiery hair.

"You incompetent fool! Do you have any idea how hard it was to catch Zubat??" the girl yelled. A boy completely identical to the girl joined her side, and Daphne noticed that they were also wearing similar clothes. The girl was in a light blue dress with a matching bow in her hair whilst the boy had a light blue t-shirt and matching long shorts. Conan groaned; the twins were hard to deal with at the best of times and now Daphne had angered the girl.

"I didn't mean to! I'll help you catch it if you like," Daphne offered. The twins shot her cold stares with their matching green eyes and marched off in the direction the Zubat had gone. Daphne sighed to herself; it was only her first day and it seemed like she already had enemies. Conan patted her shoulder.

"Don't worry about Zoe and Zack. They're happiest when they hate on someone. Let's eat." Daphne reluctantly sat with Conan and was soon cheered up by the sight that greeted her on her plate. It was piled high with goodies: scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, beans, and hash browns. Daphne tucked in delightedly. When she was halfway through her breakfast, Daphne felt a tap on her shoulder. With her mouth still full, Daphne turned around.

"You must be Conan's new partner!" a girl boomed happily. People around her winced at the volume of her voice but otherwise didn't say anything; they were used to her by now. She was dressed in black sleeveless top, a yellow skirt, and black boots with yellow over the knee socks and had a yellow bandana wrapped around her should length black hair. Her skin was tanned, as if she had been in the sun for hours too long. Standing next to her was a boy whose outfit was a red long sleeved top, black trousers and red trainers. He had fairly long light brown hair for a boy, which he tied into a pony tail. He smiled at Daphne, the twinkling of his light blue eyes matching the shine of the pendant on his necklace. The boy was cradling a Kakuna in his arms, as if it were a baby. Daphne thought they both looked like pirates.

Conan turned around and introduced them all. The girl with the loud voice and yellow bandana was called Vivian and the boy with the long hair was Massimo. They were both in Red group and had been friends with Conan and Rachel since they enrolled at the school together. They were all from different regions and would never have met if it hadn't been for this training school. Conan expressed what good friends Vivian and Massimo were to him and Rachel, as they had helped them out on more than one occasion.

"It is nothing, Conan. We are friends, no?" smiled Massimo. Vivian and Massimo sat near Conan and Daphne and began eating their breakfast. Vivian cooed over her Kakuna as she ate, treating it like an actual baby, which made Daphne want to laugh. A teacher dressed from head to toe in bright red came over to them and handed them each a piece of paper with their mission for the day. Daphne guessed that she was the coach for their group. When she got to Daphne and Conan, she also handed them a Pokéball.

"Thanks Miss Billow!" Conan enthused. Miss Billow threw a small smile his way before moving on to the next couple.

"I wonder what it is..." Daphne mused.

"Don't wonder – find out!" said Conan, releasing the Pokémon. A red beam emitted from the ball and at the end of it, a spherical shape took form. It soon transformed into the recognisable Pokémon Gastly. Daphne studied the black ball of ghostly matter surrounded by a purple glow of smog. Gastly had big, white eyes and a mouth with a pair of small fangs in it. Gastly took one look at its surroundings and tried to get back inside its Pokéball. Daphne could understand the feeling; the dining hall was pretty overwhelming. She and Conan did their best to calm Gastly down and it eventually did. It seemed to like its owners already and wanted to obey them even though its instincts were telling it to run away.

By that time, everyone had more or less finished their breakfast and was heading to their respective classrooms. Conan realized he hadn't yet read what their mission for the day was and took the opportunity to do so then.

_**Conan and Daphne. You must find and bring back one Ponyta. That is all.**_

Daphne had been reading over Conan's shoulder and grinned to herself. Their mission didn't sound so hard. She and Ghastly followed Conan to their classroom where they met up with Vivian, Massimo and Kakuna again. They sat behind desks with their Pokémon next to them while Miss Billow addressed the entire class from the front. Silence reigned over the students as they gave their coach time to give her motivational speech – she gave them one every morning.

"Good morning everyone! As always, I want you to all do your best to be the best – you hear me? Complete your missions by _any means necessary_!" A cheer went up and Miss Billow dismissed them. Daphne stayed in her seat while around her, her classmates got moving. Unsure of what to do, Daphne looked to Conan for help. He was at the back of the room, talking with Massimo. Daphne looked around and was glad to see that Zoe and Zack weren't in Red – that would have been a nightmare.

'_A nightmare hmm...'_ Startled, Daphne's eyes darted around the room in search of the person who had said that. The voice had sounded like a little girl's, and there seemed to be a definite lack of them in the room.

'_It was me who said it. Well, kind of.'_ Gastly floated in front of Daphne's face, grinning mischievously. It dawned on Daphne that Gastly was using telepathy to communicate with her. She also recalled something her mum had told her years ago about Gastly: they loved to play tricks on people. This information made Daphne wary of Gastly.

'_Please don't fear me. I won't play tricks on you. I like you and Conan too. I want to prank Zoe and Zack,'_ offered Gastly. Daphne could only imagine the mischief Gastly could do and it made her smile to think about how the twins could suffer. She looked over at Conan again and realized that it wasn't the time for pranks. The class was almost empty by now as most students had already set off on their missions. If Daphne and Conan didn't leave soon then they might not make it back on time. Daphne assured Gastly that she would get her chance later but right now they needed to focus on the task at hand. Gastly sighed but agreed with Daphne. They joined Conan, who was on his own now that Massimo had left with Vivian on their mission.

'_Conan, when can I play tricks on Zoe and Zack?'_ asked Gastly sweetly. Conan's eyes widened.

"Never! No-one can touch the twins – they're completely off-limits!" he said. Gastly pouted.

'_But whhhyyyy?'_ She sounded just like a whiney child and it made Daphne laugh. She also wondered what made the twins so untouchable, so Conan explained it to them while they made their way out of school.

"Zoe and Zack are somehow related to Giovanni. No-one knows what the relation is, but we know not to do anything stupid to them. When we first got here, this boy tried to stand up to them and challenged them to a battle. The next day he was kicked out. I don't know about you, but I'm here to join Team Rocket, not get kicked out for picking fights with the twins," said Conan, leading Daphne and Gastly through the back exit of the school. Beyond it was a vast forest, and Conan said that beyond that was a small town. The trio stepped into the wood and were immediately shrouded in shadows; the trees were so thick that not much light could get through. They walked close together – or in Gastly's case, floated – so they wouldn't get separated and then lost.

Around them, Daphne was aware of various Pokémon purposely staying out of their way. Pidgeys sat on the branches of trees, Rattatas cowered in bushes. Once, Daphne was sure an Oddish ran across their path, its green leaves flapping behind it. Doubt was beginning to wheedle its way into Daphne's mind. Did Ponytas even live in this forest? How would they catch it if it was going to run away like all the other Pokémon? The mission was starting to appear harder than Daphne had first thought.

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**Note: I had the feeling that if I didn't end it there, it would have never ended...Congrats to _Keiichiro-San _for figuring out Daphne's room mate was a boy (although I think that was pretty much obvious)._  
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	3. True Colours

True Colours

"So why do you want to join Team Rocket?" Conan asked, seeming mildly interested. Daphne was glad for the question – it gave her a distraction from the difficult task they had to do. They had been walking further into the forest and Daphne was beginning to get nervous about the task at hand.

"I guess it always was an option for me, I mean I never crossed it off my list of things I could become when I was older. Then recently, my dad said something that made me realize it was perfect for me all along. What about you?" Conan's face became a mask that covered his emotions well. He stepped carefully over a tree root before answering Daphne's question.

"I grew up in the town near here. My family were...are extremely poor. Doing this was the only way I could do something to help us, as once I become a real grunt I'll get paid properly which will help my family immensely." Daphne couldn't imagine how being poor could lead you to join Team Rocket. Wouldn't studying hard in school and getting a highly-paid job be more beneficial? Conan's logic didn't really make sense to her but she did her best to act like it did.

"Is the girl in the photograph you had last night part of your family?" asked Daphne, glad it fit well into the conversation. Gastly noticed something move just ahead of them, and it seemed to be getting closer. She couldn't make out what it was, just that it was heading in their direction. She thought it could be dangerous.

"That would be my sister, Tate. How –"

"_Be quiet! There's something up ahead, and it's coming towards us!"_ Gastly warned them urgently. The group stopped and Daphne stood her ground, ready to fight whatever was about to emerge from the bushes. She had had many fights in school and thought she knew how to defend herself if it ended in violence. A lot of rustling in the bushes occurred in front of them and when the creature finally revealed itself, Daphne was pleasantly surprised.

A Jigglypuff stood proudly before them, dusting itself down and looking up at them innocently. Just below its mouth was a dark pink bowtie that made it look rather dressed-up. Daphne laughed with relief, coming out of her fighting stance and turned to Conan – who wasn't there anymore. Daphne scanned the clearing but there was no sign of Conan anywhere.

"Where did Conan go?" she asked, feeling slightly worried. She hadn't been paying attention to where they were going and she wasn't sure that she could find her way back to the school if Conan didn't come back. In other words, she and Gastly would be stranded in the middle of the forest without a clue.

"_I didn't even notice him leave!"_ squawked Gastly anxiously. The Jigglypuff stepped forward and smiled at Daphne and Gastly, before opening its mouth to sing its soothing lullaby. Daphne felt her eyelids become heavy and soon she sank to the ground, battling against her impulse to sleep. Her nails dug into the soil as she fought against her drowsiness in an attempt to remain conscious. She had to stay awake, if only to take care of Gastly and have a hope of being reunited with her partner. Without meaning to, Daphne fell face first on to the ground and everything went black...

It was dark when Daphne finally woke up. It was a chilly night and her bare arms felt the worst of the cold. Mud was smeared on her cheeks and covered her fingers. She found Gastly lying near her, still out cold. Daphne picked up the Pokémon and hugged her tightly, trying to share her body heat and at the same time receive some back. However, as Gastly was mostly made of gas it was quite hard to hold her, let alone get some heat from her. Gastly's body was hard to hold on to; kind of like trying to carry a slippery ball of goo. Daphne looked around and tried to determine which way she needed to go in order to get back. The forest had been dim during the day but not it was absolutely pitch black. Taking a deep breath, Daphne walked in the direction she thought it was and hoped for the best, cursing Conan. She wouldn't be lost if he hadn't ditched her earlier. Some partner!

After walking a short while, Gastly began to stir.

"_Wh-what happened?"_ she asked sleepily. Daphne explained the situation to Gastly who was wide awake in an instant once she realized they were lost. They continued their journey for a while, with Gastly floating next to Daphne rather than in her arms this time. As they travelled, Daphne thought she could see a faint light in the distance. They got closer and Daphne became even more certain that something was up ahead. Gastly saw it too and they both thought it was the school. They ran towards it, laughing with relief. They stopped when it was obvious the light they had seen wasn't from the school at all – but from the mane and tail of a Ponyta. Daphne's eyes grew wide when she clocked the person on the Ponyta's back.

"Conan?!" she spluttered. "Where have you been all this time?? And how did you catch that Ponyta?!" Conan wasn't fazed by Daphne's outburst; he almost seemed serene as he sat on the Ponyta's back. He beckoned for Daphne and Gastly to follow him and he turned the Ponyta around, in the correct direction of the school. Daphne wasn't going to let him off easily though, and demanded to know what had happened when she was sleeping.

"It doesn't matter. We completed the mission didn't we?" Conan replied calmly. Daphne glared at him.

"_But you left us. We're supposed to be a team!"_ whimpered Gastly, trying not to cry. Conan softened.

"I'm sorry about that. But I had to," he said defensively. Daphne muttered 'whatever' and remained silent for the rest of the journey, annoyed with Conan for abandoning his teammates. Gastly felt torn between her two new trainers, unsure of whose side to go on. In the end, she made her own side and stuck to it like glue. They arrived back at the school just in time to catch an argument going on between Vivian and Zoe. Vivian's cheeks were tinged with red from shouting so much. A crowd had gathered around the two girls and Daphne barged her way to the front in order to see more clearly what was going on. Conan had to hand in the Ponyta to Miss Billow to prove they had been successful with their mission and so didn't witness the following events.

Zoe said something to Vivian that she didn't like and she lost it. She lunged for Zoe, trying to punch her in the face while Massimo struggled to hold her back. Vivian was going crazy, pushing Massimo out of her way so she could reach Zoe and land her punch. Zoe was busy cowering behind her brother, who looked just as scared as Zoe did. Daphne, along with the rest of the audience, cheered Vivian on jovially, all off them hoping she would bruise Zoe. One pair next to Daphne mentioned something about Vivian's lack of anger management being 'the best entertainment of all time'. Vivian's face was so filled with rage that she resembled an angry Golem, and Daphne had to admit that she didn't want to be on the receiving end of her wrath for all the money in the world.

Gastly saw a chance to cause some mischief and seized it. She found a glass pitcher filled with water and levitated it over Zoe and Zack's heads. Grinning wickedly, she tipped it and the ice-cold water splashed over the twins, soaking them instantly. The crowd was silent for a moment and then everyone burst into peals of laughter; Zoe and Zack looked hilariously drowned with their red hair sticking to their heads uselessly. They coughed and spluttered, not realizing that their light blue clothes had gone slightly see-through which only added to the comedic effect. They stared at the crowd laughing at them and ran tearfully away, their Zubat following lazily. Vivian seemed to calm down after that and picked her Kakuna off the floor where it had been lying and cuddled it lovingly, as if she hadn't been furious just seconds ago. The crowd dispersed, seeing that the action was over. Daphne was the only one still there, praising Gastly for her prank.

"Hey, Daphne, right?" Vivian asked uncertainly. "Where's Conan at?" Daphne explained about the Ponyta and Vivian said she understood.

"What were you fighting about?" asked Daphne interestedly. Massimo came behind Vivian and patted her shoulder. She looked at him and smiled.

"Zoe called Massimo a dainty little pretty-boy. There was no way I was going to let her talk about my beau like that!" Vivian replied hotly. Massimo wrapped his arm around Vivian's shoulder and she visibly softened.

"She is very fierce girlfriend, but very lovely also," said Massimo. Vivian beamed at him and they walked off in the direction of the recreation room, leaving Daphne alone with Gastly. Daphne hadn't realized Vivian and Massimo were together but then she admitted they made a good couple. She and Gastly decided to look for Conan as he was a part of their team and they couldn't leave him out – but more importantly he had the key to their room. They walked a little way until an appetising aroma filled the air. Daphne's stomach growled and she realized that she was starving. She followed the smell into the dining hall where she found a plate of roast dinner with her name on it. A bowl of Pokémon food had also been prepared and was quickly consumed by a ravenous Gastly. They ate until their stomachs were full to bursting point and then they optimistically made room for desert – triple chocolate brownie cake. They exchanged satisfied looks before digging in. Once everything had been licked clean, Daphne could barely move. She slowly got to her feet and shuffled out of the dining hall with Gastly, in search of Conan. They didn't look particularly hard but luckily for them Conan was heading in their direction.

They went back to their room in an awkward silence, all three not knowing what to say after the events of the day. Daphne showered and changed first and while Conan was in the bathroom, Gastly spoke to her using telepathy.

"_Daphne, can I ask something kind of personal?" _she asked sweetly.

"Go ahead," encouraged Daphne.

"_Can I have a name?"_ Daphne blinked dumbly at the Pokémon. Surely she wasn't serious? It was hardly 'personal', and didn't merit the serious tone Gastly was using at all.

"_I just feel like everyone else has one but me,"_ continued Gastly, quite reasonably. Daphne nodded.

"Of course! Maybe we should ask Conan's opinion when he comes out of the shower..." said Daphne doubtfully. Gastly shook her head furiously.

"_No. I want to choose my name,"_ she said firmly. Daphne shrugged; she didn't mind. If Gastly wanted to pick a name for her self then she wouldn't argue. It was a strange thing to do but Daphne was too tired to point that out. She wrapped her duvet around herself and listened out for the sounds that would indicate Conan leaving the bathroom. Taps turning off: check.

"_I like Amina," _Gastly smiled mischievously. Brushing teeth: check. _"It means 'honest'."_ 'Amina' cackled loudly, and Daphne managed a smile. It was ironic for Gastly to be called something that meant honest, and the fact that she wanted it to mean it suggested to Daphne that 'Amina' at least had a sense of humour. That was fine – Daphne liked a good laugh now and then.

"I think its great," praised Daphne. Door being unlocked: check. 'Amina' beamed. Conan emerged from the bathroom, rubbing his wet hair vigorously with his towel. Daphne's eyes snapped shut and she rolled over so that she was facing away from him, leaving it up to the Pokémon to explain her new nickname. She wanted a proper apology from her teammate before she was ready to put the events of the day behind her. Her pride had been damaged when she realized Conan had ditched her and 'Amina' so he could capture the Ponyta by him self. It was as if he had no faith in their abilities at all, and Daphne was certain she would have been of some use had Conan given her the chance. He was such a jerk.

Conan thought Amina was a great name and congratulated her on thinking it up all by her self. Amina beamed at him; already forgetting about him going off without her and Daphne earlier. She returned herself to her Pokéball for the night and Conan slipped into his bed. He stared at the back of Daphne's head for a while. He could understand why she was upset with him but he wasn't going to say sorry; it was only because he had done what he had that they had completed their mission. Ponyta's were incredibly fast and therefore difficult to capture. It would have been near impossible for the three of them to sneak up on it unheard and catch it. Besides, Conan didn't even feel sorry or guilty. He had done the right thing by his standards. He too turned his back on his partner and tried to get some sleep. Tomorrow was coming with its own challenges and Conan wanted to be well-rested for it.

Approximately one hour and twenty six minutes later, both Conan and Daphne were still wide awake. Neither knew the other wasn't yet sleeping. Another minute went by and Conan rolled over to face Daphne.

"Psst. You awake?" he whispered doubtfully. Without turning around, Daphne answered him.

"Uh-huh." A tense silence filled the room. Then:

"How about we forget the whole incident?" Conan offered. Daphne considered this idea for a moment.

"Fine." Satisfied, Conan shifted his body so his head was under his pillow and got ready for a peaceful sleep. Daphne snuggled down into her duvet and did more or less the same. No-one had apologised but the issue had been resolved. Daphne's head was spiralling out of control; she felt like she had experienced too much just for one day. Yesterday had seemed so bright but today, the cracks had begun to show.

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**Note: Hope you enjoyed this chapter! There are a lot more exciting events planned for this story, so keep an eye out :) Although, I do think there won't be much updates in June (a major exam month) but once it hits July then BAM! chapters galore XD**


	4. The Next Step

The Next Step

Daphne had been at the training school for three weeks and she was sick of having to go to the extra sessions on the weekend. Miss Billow had insisted she attend them because of her 'new' status and as she was part of a team, Conan and Amina had to join her. Amina didn't particularly mind since it gave her a chance to get more powerful, having never battled before. She enjoyed battling Miss Billow's Arbok, although it being a lot stronger than her beat her each time they faced each other. Conan loathed the extra sessions even more than Daphne did; when he had first arrived along with everyone else, they had gone through the basic training and now he was being forced to do it all over again. They had to get a certain time in the assault course, successfully identify easy victims to attack and rob, complete a series of written theory work and a lot more besides.

Daphne did, however, thoroughly enjoy the weekday missions, which enabled her to be as creatively nasty as she wanted. She, Conan and Amina made a great team when it came to the missions and since the first mission they hadn't had any issues. The chemistry between them was dynamic, and they came back to the training school everyday feeling pleased with themselves and each other. They had learned how to work together in a short amount of time and for that reason alone, they had faith in their team. They believed they might just make it as field agents.

Zoe had acted snootily towards Vivian every time their paths crossed, which thankfully wasn't that often. The twins spent most of their time with their group leader, and what they did was a mystery to all the peewee trainers.

It was Monday, and Miss Billow had some exciting news for the Red group. She had gathered them in the classroom straight after breakfast: Daphne was sitting with Conan on one side and Vivian and Massimo on the other, fussing over their Kakuna. They continued to assure her that it wouldn't be long before it evolved into a Beedrill, although Conan confided to Daphne that they had been assuring him of the same thing ever since they had all arrived. No-one had received a mission that morning and everyone was feeling rather jittery about what was to come. Nothing like this had happened before and Daphne could feel the excitement crackling in the air. Miss Billow clapped her hands loudly to get Red group's attention.

"Now, it may have come to your attention that you didn't receive your daily mission slip. That's because it had been decided among us seven leaders that the majority of you are ready to leave this place and become apprentices of field agents already out there." The teenagers gasped and began to chatter animatedly; this was the big break they had been fighting tooth and nail for! They had endured hours of thieving, physical coaching and general misdeeds for this very moment. Everything had paid off in full by the sound of it. Whoever said crime doesn't pay clearly hadn't been a part of Team Rocket. Partners exchanged gleeful high-fives and matching grins, not settling down until Miss Billow was yelling at the top of her voice.

"I will call out the names of those who are departing and the city they will be sent to. Isabella and David: Hearthome; Charlotte and Maxwell: Saffron; Selene and Saul: Lilycove..." And on and on it went, until Daphne, Conan, Vivian and Massimo were the only ones not going anywhere. They sat at their desks, feeling cheated. They were just as good as the rest of them – it wasn't fair that they weren't being allowed to become apprentices too. Miss Billow dismissed everyone else so they could get packed and ready for their journey and they left, talking loudly and happily about what was in store for them in whatever city they had been allocated.

Vivian had slowly been working up into a frightening rage, and not even Massimo's soothing words could calm her down. She banged her fists on her desk and demanded to know why her team wouldn't be travelling like everyone else. Miss Billow glared at her, not impressed by her anger.

"It doesn't make sense to send all of you away. There's a perfectly good town right here that you can manipulate." Vivian had assumed that she and Massimo were being kept on the island because they had been deemed a weak team but after hearing Miss Billow's explanation became confident in her team's skills once more. Miss Billow then turned to Daphne and Conan.

"I'm aware that Daphne hasn't had as much training as you, Conan, so I expect you to help her if need be. You two are a team and working together to achieve misery is your job from now on!" she said, getting fired up about her motivational speech. "In your rooms are the supplies you will need to take you as far as the main town. When you get there, you will need to provide for yourselves by any means necessary. The field agents you will be working under will seek you out. Good luck!" The two groups agreed to set off together and split up once they got to the town, as they didn't want to rely on each other too much. The results of their actions in the town of Dearborn would determine whether they became Team Rocket field agents. The two teams went to their separate rooms to collect the supplies Miss Billow had mentioned. Daphne checked her drawers and was surprised to see that someone had emptied them. Conan's were just the same, and he panicked for a moment until he found the picture of his sister under his pillow, where he had left it.

Checking their bags, they discovered that there was not a change of clothes, or any personal hygiene products. Instead they had lengths of rope, a few Pokéballs, a bottle of water and a small loaf of bread each. Daphne stared at them in disbelief, before she reminded herself that they were expected to make do with what they were given and live off the bad deeds they committed. It seemed only fair that their supplies didn't look very useful.

When they were ready, Conan, Daphne and Amina left their room for the last time and Conan locked it behind them. They then made their way down the stairs in the direction of the front door. They passed the hallway that was out of bounds to them unless they had permission and Daphne realized she had never even wondered what was down there. Conan hadn't either, and after making sure no-one was around, they gave in to their curiosity and snuck through the double doors.

"_Kuh kuh kuh kuh..."_

"What was that?" Conan hissed at Amina.

"_I'm working on an evil laugh,"_ she whispered back. _"I like sneaking around like this. It feels villainous!"_ Daphne smiled at the young Pokémon, but was quickly reminded that this was no time to have fun when she heard voices. As swiftly as she could, Daphne pulled Conan into the nearest room and crouched down under the window in the wooden door. Amina speedily followed them and they shut the door in, carefully leaving a small gap so they could see who was coming.

Zoe and Zack were walking down the hallway with their Zubat flying lazily after them. Their faces were identically pinched, as if they had received some bad news. Walking with them was someone Conan recognised as the leader of Green group – which the twins were in. As a result of never having a reason to talk to him, Conan didn't know the leader of Green group's name. His face was just as serious as the twins and the three of them marched down the hall before storming through the double doors and out of sight. Conan and Daphne exhaled loudly, relieved to have not been found sneaking around in a restricted area. The team slipped back out the way they came and met up with Massimo and Vivian. As they approached the couple, Vivian was ordering Massimo to carry both bags whilst she carried Kakuna in her arms.

"What took you guys so long?" Vivian asked impatiently. She directed them all to set off due east, which was where Dearborn Town was. Conan asked how she knew the way and Vivian replied that she had stolen a map from a team in Yellow group when they weren't looking. Conan and Daphne grinned appreciatively at Vivian's 'good' work and they set off through the foreboding woods. Amina zipped restlessly between the four wannabe field agents, distracting them and being a general nuisance. They walked through the woods trampling bushes where small Pokémon had made their homes under their shoes. The sun let little light through the thick tree tops and Daphne couldn't shake the feeling of déjà vu. She hoped Conan didn't desert them like he had the first time.

They journeyed in a companionable silence, each of them excitedly anticipating their arrival in Dearborn Town. They all had ideas of what they would do once they got their, and how much fear they would instil in the local people's hearts. Maybe they'd even pilfer some Pokémon while they were at it, to make them look even worse than the average peewee trainer.

They stopped to eat when everyone complained that they were hungry. Daphne felt kind of ominous about eating her piece of bread: it was the last meal she was completely sure of. Once it had been consumed, Daphne would have to find her own food by 'any means necessary'. It struck her how Miss Billow seemed to be fond of that saying, as she used it often. After brushing the crumbs off her face, Daphne asked Vivian when they would arrive at Dearborn Town. Vivian shrugged.

"It looks like maybe few more hours?" Massimo suggested, stretching his arms. The bags had been steadily weighing him down, although he didn't dare grumble about the heavy load to his girlfriend. He had seen her at the height of her rage before and he didn't want to be the victim of it. After a brief rest the group set off once more. By now, Amina didn't have the energy to be so carefree and had resorted to being carried by Daphne in order to keep up.

By the time it was dark, Vivian asserted that they were almost there and that it would take no less than an hour to get there. She looked around and was surprised to see everyone more or less collapsed on the floor, completely exhausted. It wasn't safe to sleep in the woods without a tent or anything like that, but Vivian didn't think they had a choice. She reluctantly gave in and she took her bag from Massimo to use as a pillow. The others followed suit and soon they were all lying in the soft shrubs. Daphne could hear the rustle of nocturnal Pokémon moving around and the occasion cry of wild Pokémon. She knew she shouldn't be scared but Daphne couldn't help herself, and cuddled Amina for comfort.

Amina was already asleep, as were Conan and Kakuna. Massimo quickly joined them, along with Vivian. Daphne listened to the sounds of her allies sleeping happily away, and urged herself to do the same. She didn't want to be awake much longer, listening to the night sounds of the dense woods.

The next morning, the four teenagers and two Pokémon woke up as soon as the sun rose. Their muscles were stiff and they ached all over – a result of sleeping in such poor conditions. They were all covered in soil and the odd leaf. Conan couldn't wait to use a bed again. Amina and Kakuna were so unhappy that their respective owners returned them to their Pokéballs so they could rest more comfortably. They felt foolish for not thinking of this last night, when they could have spared their Pokémon pain. However, they had all been very tired and none of them had really been thinking straight. They walked the way to Dearborn Town in throbbing misery, none of them in the mood to make conversation. Daphne felt the worst because she had endured less training than the others and so her body wasn't used to being put through such harsh conditions. They forced themselves to keep putting one foot in front of the other and because of their bodily pains; it took them a little longer than it should have to reach their destination.

Dearborn Town was a lot bigger than Daphne had imagined. Just from her first glance on the edge of the wood, she could see hundreds of houses, surrounding a town centre with many shops and a gym. Rather than splitting up the moment they got to the town, like they had planned originally, the four of them made their way to the Pokémon Centre which was located in the town's centre. Daphne knew she should be scanning the area for possible crime opportunities but the only thing she could think of was relaxing in an actual bed. In a dream-like state, they entered the Pokémon Centre.

Nurse Joy was surprised to see a group of teenagers who looked so rough and immediately rushed to their side, concerned for their well-being. Massimo explained that they had slept roughly in the woods and wanted two rooms and for their Pokémon to be healed. Nurse Joy nodded understandingly.

"Of course," she said, as they handed over their Pokéballs. "We don't usually get many trainers who wish to make use of our rooms during the day so there should be more than enough rooms available for you." They followed Nurse Joy to the front desk where she gave them two keys for two rooms and pointed them the way upstairs. She then went around the back to bring Amina and Kakuna back to maximum health.

The four teenagers rigidly made their way upstairs and barely said goodnight before retreating into their rooms. Daphne tumbled on to her bed without bothering to pull back the blanket and within minutes was sleeping soundly. Conan took the time to take his bag off his back and remove his shoes and socks before snuggling into the comfortable bed he had been dreaming of for the past hour or so.

They'd start being a terror to the community first thing tomorrow morning when they got their strength back.

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**Note: Phew! That chapter took a lot out of me, so I hope you're grateful! lol I won't be updating very much because starting tomorrow, it's exam season! (dun dun DUNNN)**


	5. You Can't Handle The Truth

You Can't Handle the Truth

Daphne and Conan woke up early the next morning. They had both woken once prior to this, although it had been at different times. Upon seeing their partner still asleep, they had both gone on short walks around the town without really taking anything in. They'd both arrived back at the Pokémon Centre to find their partner hadn't stirred and gone back to sleep themselves. But now they were both awake, and after some quick thinking and even quicker thievery, even had a change of clean clothes to wear. Daphne and Conan checked on Massimo and Vivian's room and were surprised to find that they had already left the Pokémon Centre, without even saying goodbye. It was probably for the best, as they would have had to go their separate ways at some point and it wouldn't do well to rely on the other team for companionship. Daphne and Conan didn't want to run the risk of bumping into the two teenagers whose clothes they had stolen and so speedily made their way downstairs to return the room key to retrieve Amina, who was happy to see them now she was feeling fully refreshed. After a brief reunion, the trio left the Pokémon Centre without any real plan in mind. On Conan's suggestion, they went around the town as they were already at its centre.

They had been instructed to find the field agents who would be their mentors but it hadn't crossed their minds how exactly they were going to do that. They walked aimlessly through town, struggling to come up with a plan to find the field agents that would help them become ones themselves. When Amina complained that she was hungry, Conan directed the group's attention to a market stall selling fresh fruits. The owner was an old man with grey hair and a slightly hunched-over back. He looked perfectly harmless. Grinning wickedly, Conan shared the idea that sprung to mind as soon as he caught sight of the old man. It didn't take Daphne long to fine-tuned the plan and work out all the minor details. Amina watched her two trainers use their combined skill to come up with their first misdeed on their own. She was impressed, to say the least.

Once she was told her part in the plan, Amina got to her position next to Conan and got comfortably into her role. They watched as Daphne approached the stall. Just before, she had plaited her long green hair into two and adding that to the fact that she was wearing a t-shirt with a smiley face emblazoned on the front, Daphne came across as a sweet and innocent teenage girl. Oh, the irony.

"Excuse me sir, but could I ask you a question?" Daphne spoke politely so as to get on the man's good side. He looked up, hoping for a customer and was a little disappointed to see a little girl. Still, she looked rather upset to him and he put a smile on his face to ask her what was wrong.

"You see the thing is..." Daphne looked down at her hands and startled fiddling with her fingers – which was Conan and Amina's cue to come in. They didn't let her down and made their way over to the stall, looking around shiftily as if they were scared someone was going to stop them. The old man saw them approaching out of the corner of his eye and was immediately on guard. He'd been robbed plenty times over the years and had learned how to defend his stock against pesky teenagers. There was no way he was going to allow Conan and Amina to slip the wool over his eyes.

"...the thing is, sir, I'm new in town and I was supposed to meet my mum near the gym and I don't know where it is." The old man was now giving Conan and a rather vicious-looking Amina his undivided attention. They hovered over some of his pricier fruit that had been imported from abroad, Conan licking his lips for effect. Conan picked up an exotic-looking pink sphere with relish, and after steadily keeping his eyes on the old man for a while, asked how much it was. The man replied with a number that was probably double the price of the fruit originally and Conan reluctantly replaced the fruit.

Well, he was about to.

He quickly changed his mind and took a great bite out of it, the pink juice dribbling down his chin. It was sweeter than he anticipated, but not bad. The old man turned completely away from Daphne and began yelling at Conan, ordering him to pay up. Conan ignored the old man and lazily reached for another fruit of the same type. The man stepped forward with the intention of grabbing hold of the boy's wrist and dragging him single-handily to the police. However, that was when Amina got involved. She bared her teeth at the old man and used Mean Look, rooting him to the spot as he froze in fear. The old man kept calm under these conditions though, and began shouting for help. Before anyone could heroically show up with the intent of being the old man's saviour, Conan urged Amina to follow him as he raced off, weaving in and out of buildings until he came to the place where they had entered Dearborn Town two days ago. After checking that no-one had followed them, Conan relaxed and sat at the foot of a nearby tree. He bit into the pink fruit he had managed to take with him and relished the taste of it.

"_We were good, weren't we Conan?"_ Amina asked, excitedly bouncing up and down. Conan grinned.

"Actually, we were great," Daphne replied, stepping out from behind the tree Conan was resting at with her arms filled with a vast variety of fruit. Amina's eyes lit up and she swooped down, eating five fruits whole as she did so. She licked her lips messily, and thanked Daphne. Daphne smiled in return and joined Conan at the foot of the tree. She handed him some fruit and he wordlessly took them from her.

While the old man had been eyeing Conan and Amina warily, Daphne had grabbed as much fruit as she could handle and fled the scene before the old man had even called for help. He would later look back and guess that the innocent little girl had wandered off to find directions from someone else, not suspecting her of stealing from him. Although he would wonder if he had more stock before she showed up...

The three team mates ate all the fruit they could manage and lazed around, their hunger now satisfied. They still had no idea how to find their mentors but things didn't seem so hopeless now – if it came to the worst and they couldn't find them, then at least they knew they could look after themselves for a while. Somewhere in the distance, a school bell rang and the unmistakable roar of happy school children was heard. From those two sounds alone, Conan deduced that it was break time at Dearborn Primary School.

It had been a while since he had been in his hometown. He hadn't planned on returning so soon, but it couldn't be helped. Conan could remember when he used to go to the local primary school, and how miserable he had been because of the state of his family. If it wasn't for his sister, Conan might have given up altogether. As it were, Tate gave Conan a reason to actively do something about their family's current situation, and everything he did at the peewee training school, he did for her.

Daphne took her clothes out of her bag and checked them over. They definitely needed a good wash, make no mistake. She wished that wasn't the case though: her new t-shirt irritated her. Why couldn't the person she had 'borrowed' the top from been more mature with her clothes? It was just Daphne's luck to get stuck with a t-shirt that had a huge smiley face across the middle. She hated it. It was so bloody cheerful – and what did Daphne have to be cheerful about? The first chance she got, she was going to throw the t-shirt in the bin.

The excitement of their misdeed was wearing off of Amina and she began to calm down from her childish high. She was bored and had the urge to play a prank on someone but there was no-one around to be a victim. She could trick Daphne and Conan, however she distinctly remembered promising not to do such a thing. Then again...maybe _that_ had been a prank, and Amina just didn't know it yet?

Chuckling quietly to herself, Amina worked hard to come up with a good prank to get her trainers with. They stared at Dearborn Town, completely oblivious to their Pokémon's cruel thoughts.

A loud, high-pitched voice interrupted their quiet reflection, and all three averted their attention to the direction from which the noise had come. A girl was running towards them; calling out loudly, closely followed by a small, pink Pokémon. Conan and Daphne quickly got to their feet, immediately on their guard. They had just committed a crime and someone to be chasing after them while shouting sounded highly suspicious to their ears. They were poised and ready to flee the area if necessary. Plans to prank Daphne and Conan flew out of Amina's mind as she advised herself to keep calm. She wouldn't be much use if she panicked.

The girl ran closer and the trio realized she wasn't a threat – mainly because she looked no older than nine years old. Daphne and Amina began to relax, although Conan seemed to grow tenser. The girl raced right into him and enveloped him in a hug with a cry of 'oh Coney!'. Daphne and Amina smirked at his embarrassed expression, his cheeks turning a light red. When the girl stepped away from Conan, Daphne wasn't surprised to see that the girl was the same one from the photograph Conan treasured. His little sister, Tate. Seeing her face-to-face, the resemblance she had to Conan was striking: they had the same eyes, the same complexion and the same nose. They were nearly identical, except Tate had glasses and was – obviously – a girl. Although, she was a really girly-girl, which Daphne could tell from the way she was dressed entirely in pink: from a pink t-shirt to pink sandals. Conan turned to Daphne and Amina.

"This is my little sister, Tate. Tate, these are my team mates, Daphne and Amina," he introduced them. Tate beamed.

"It's nice to meet you two! Oh, and this is my Jigglypuff..." Daphne stared hard at the round Pokémon, and thought she recognised it from somewhere. It looked like any other Jigglypuff, apart from a dark pink bowtie just below its mouth that made it look rather dressed-up. When Daphne finally connected the dots, she turned to Conan in fury.

"This is the same Jigglypuff that put me and Amina to sleep, isn't it?" Conan didn't know what to say, so he didn't say anything. It hadn't occurred to him what he would say in the event that Daphne figured out that he and the Jigglypuff were connected. Amina also turned to him, backing up Daphne with an angry glare. Conan looked around shiftily.

"It's not his fault! Well, actually that's not true...Uhm...Jigglypuff _had_ to put you to sleep, or else you would have seen me help Conan catch the Ponyta!" Tate interjected, rushing in before she had time to think about what she was saying. This admittance only made matters worse for Conan. Daphne shot him a dark look, filled with a new found hatred.

"So you mean to tell me that you favoured your kid sister's help over mine and Amina's?" Daphne hissed accusingly. Conan managed to find his voice eventually and decided to defend himself, rather than leaving it up to his sister who hadn't exactly done a good job of it in her first attempt.

"Look, it wasn't like that." Daphne raised an eyebrow and folded her arms, not yet convinced. Amina hovered by Daphne's shoulder and bared her teeth at Conan.

"_Should I use Lick on him?"_ she offered nastily.

"Hey, let's not do anything rash here! Can I explain myself?" Daphne and Amina looked at each other, seeing what the other thought. Tate watched the three of them interact, fascinated. The last time she had seen her brother was over two weeks now, and he hadn't been getting ganged up on by a teenage girl and a Gastly. Tate found it interesting to watch, and did so without speaking. Daphne and Amina nodded, giving their permission so Conan could try to defend himself.

"Before you two arrived, Rachel and Paras were my partners. Rachel was so feeble and good-natured, and she encouraged Paras to be the same. Every time we were sent on a mission, Rachel would find a way to mess it up on purpose. I was so frustrated with her that I made an arrangement with Tate to have her put to sleep every mission we went on together. Rachel soon figured it out and felt betrayed, so she left with Paras. Then when you two came along, I didn't have time to let Tate know that there would be a change in the arrangement we had." Daphne's arms dropped to her sides. So _that_ was why Conan's partner had left so suddenly. She regarded the Jigglypuff, now running in circles around Tate's legs. It was oblivious to the fact that it had been the cause of so much tension. Daphne considered all that Conan had told her. It wasn't actually intentional that the Jigglypuff had put them to sleep, since Tate had no idea that Conan had gained new partners. It was all one big misunderstanding, and Daphne would be stupid to hold it against her team mate. She sighed and gave in.

With that issue now resolved, the three humans and two Pokémon found a hush come over them, as they all waited for someone else to cut in before they spoke. They looked at each other awkwardly, until Daphne took it upon herself to lead them in conversation.

"So how old are you, Tate?" she asked conversationally. Being an only child, Daphne hadn't had much experience with talking to people younger than her and she had concluded long before that she didn't really like children. She could tolerate them, yes, but most of the time they were so sticky and noisy that she wished they all lived somewhere far away from her.

"I'm gonna be thirteen in a few weeks," replied Tate proudly. Daphne was shocked. To her, Tate looked no older than nine! How could she be twelve? She had a childish face and was on the short side, too. Daphne found it hard to accept that Tate was only two years younger than herself. She knew that it wouldn't look good if she insulted her partner's little sister straight after meeting her for the first time and held her tongue, praying she wasn't showing her inner thoughts on her face.

"_No way! You don't look older than ten,"_ Amina said bluntly. Daphne shook her head; she should have known Amina would say something like that. Tate fixed the Pokémon with a cold stare and stuck her tongue out at her. Conan suppressed his laughter and suggested that they go home.

"Why?" asked Tate, staring up at her older brother.

"Two reasons: one, you're supposed to be in school and if Officer Jenny catches you then we're going to be in trouble and two, we have nothing better to do." Tate grumbled 'good point' and they set off in the direction of Conan's house.

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**Note: It's really long and nothing really dramatic happens, I know. But the next chapter, I think that's when it gets more exciting. Just remember I have exams and whatnot, so updates won't be frequent XP I'm happy though, coz even I can tell my writing has developed a lot since I first joined this site. I'm actually not relying heavily on talking to move the story along! Yay!**


	6. Conan's Family

**Note: Sorry for the long wait! In my defense, I had my GCSEs so I had to concentrate on them rather than anything fun. Still, I'm confident I got (mostly) 'A's :D I'm sucha lil nerd ha ha! Oh but wait, you probably aren't interested in my life story but my ACTUAL story...so go ahead and read it! Although it is a little sad...  
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Conan's Family

Daphne didn't know what to say when they came to Conan's house. Granted, her house hadn't been much to look at with the paint peeling off the front door and a few weeds cluttering the garden. Inside wasn't much better: nearly ever room was littered with empty bottles and old newspapers, courtesy of Daphne's dad. It wasn't a palace but it certainly wasn't a dump. There was some decent furniture inside and for the most part it was clean, if a little messy. She wouldn't want to invite anyone of a high status there but she wouldn't mind if – for example – Conan and Amina went there to visit. She wasn't embarrassed of the state of her house just because it was a little unkempt. Conan's house on the other hand, was something else altogether.

The garden was an overgrown fortress of weeds and litter built up over a number of years, it seemed. The path had been lost underneath it all and Daphne picked her way delicately after Conan and Tate's lead around the back of the house, eyeing the building warily. The fact that the windows and front door were boarded up with thick, ugly metal didn't help to build a good impression on Daphne. Whoever had put the metal on the windows and door was obviously lazy and hadn't bothered to do the same to the back of the house as it was all clear. Well, as clear as windows caked in so much layers of filth that they were a grimy black could be. Conan pushed the back door and beckoned for Daphne and Amina to follow him inside. Tate ran on ahead, carrying her Jigglypuff in her arms. Daphne still couldn't quite believe she was twelve.

Amina and Daphne looked at each other and could tell that they were both thinking the same: this _couldn't_ be where Conan lived. They went inside.

Candles were lit around the room, illuminating it where the sun couldn't. They were in the kitchen although it didn't look like much cooking went on in there. The cupboards looked like they hadn't been opened in twenty years and there was no fridge, just an empty space and lonely electric socket where it should be. The tiles on the floor were cracked and chipped in so many places that it could have been a work of modern art if not for the dirt caked on top. Amina moved closer to Daphne for comfort. She didn't like it there.

They didn't stay in the kitchen long as Conan swiftly led the way into the next room. Daphne could tell that this room was more used than the first one. There was an old washing machine in one corner, next to an electrical generator of some sort. Old threadbare fleeces made do as rugs on the floor and the beat-up sofa against the far wall looked like it had seen better days although it was still usable. Tate wasn't in the room so Daphne assumed she had gone through the opposite door and presumably it went upstairs. Conan flicked a switch on one side of the generator and wires leading off from it crackled with energy. Daphne saw that the wires went out a crack in the brick wall and Conan explained it was linked to the next door's electricity cable. They were essentially stealing electricity from the next house and Daphne and Amina were impressed.

"We can wash our clothes now," announced Conan. Daphne handed her bag of clothes over to Conan wordlessly. She didn't understand why Conan lived in such poor conditions and didn't want to say anything that might offend or insult him. If Conan had been anyone else, Daphne would have undoubtedly have made a snarky comment but as he was her partner she held her tongue. They did have to work together, after all.

Conan took the bag from Daphne's hands and emptied the clothes into the washing machine before loading his own. He picked up the washing powder at the side of the metal cube and tossed some in too before closing the door and starting the wash. All the while Daphne and Amina watched him with pity. No wonder he preferred to be a team rocket agent-in-training rather than staying home – if that's what you could call it. Conan turned to his teammates, slightly annoyed with the sorry look in their eyes.

"You don't have to take pity on me, you know," he said defensively. Daphne immediately protested.

"Me? Pity you? Pfft!" she denied unconvincingly.

"Don't lie: I can see the way you're looking at me. All you can think about is how awful it must be for me to live here," countered Conan. Even though it was true, Daphne didn't want to admit that and so feigned innocence. Suffice to say, Amina didn't have as much determination.

"_But...why do you live here? Don't you have money?"_ she asked tactlessly. Daphne slapped herself on the head. She should have expected Amina to say something as blunt as that: she always did. It was becoming quite annoying, actually.

Conan sighed. He had known bringing them to his house would cause such questions to arise; questions which, if he was honest, he didn't particularly like answering. He hoped that if he put all his cards on the table his other team members would understand where he was coming from and therefore a stronger relationship would be built within the team. With them working like a well-oiled machine, there was no doubt they would make it to Team Rocket field agents and then Conan would be rolling in money. He could then use said money to rescue his family from such a depressing house – his main goal at the end of the day.

"Come with me." It wasn't a suggestion open to friendly negotiation; it was an order given by Conan. Nonplussed, Daphne and Amina trailed behind him as Conan led them out the door, up the stairs across the hallway and into a bedroom. Tate was sitting on an old wooden box, talking animatedly about her day. Her Jigglypuff was nowhere to be seen and Daphne assumed it was in one of the other rooms she had seen along the hall.

The bedroom wasn't as shabby as the living room downstairs, mainly because there wasn't a whole lot in it to actually look worn away. Shoved into one corner was a large wardrobe that someone had drawn all over in bright colouring pens – presumably it was courtesy of Tate. Wild Ponytas on their hind legs and beautiful Butterfrees fluttering among flowers decorated the two chipped doors and brought colour into an otherwise dull room. A double bed took up most of the room, the sheets made of grey cotton that had probably been white at some point in their existence. There was an old lamp sitting on Tate's lap which illuminated the room in much better light the living room downstairs, thus making it easy to see the woman sitting up in the bed.

She had long lilac hair that tumbled down her shoulders untidily. She was wearing a white nightdress with the grey duvet tucked tightly around her legs. She shared the same face shape as Conan and Tate so Daphne assumed they were related somehow. She also noticed that the woman's face had a few wrinkles but none that were set really deep; she looked to be in her late thirties. She had a kind face and was listening to Tate speak, smiling in the girl's general direction. The woman didn't look straight at her though – mainly because she was obviously blind.

"Mum, I brought my friends Daphne and Amina to see you. Amina is a Gastly," said Conan. His mum turned her head slightly towards the sound of his voice and Tate stopped describing what she did at break time with her school friends. Conan's mum kept her eyes wide open even though she couldn't see out of them, allowing Daphne and Amina to have a great view of the dull grey irises.

"Oh er, hello?" stammered Daphne, looking at Conan nervously.

"_Hi Conan's mum!"_ said Amina cheerfully. Conan's mum nodded her head politely.

"Please call me Estelle," she smiled. Daphne nodded but quickly realized her mistake and verbalised her response.

"Okay...Estelle." Tate watched her brother and his new teammates reproachfully.

"Can I continue my story?" she demanded, pouting. Conan assured her she could and left the room with Daphne and Amina on his heels. He took them back to the living room where they proceeded to sit on the sofa. Amina hovered close to their heads.

"_Estelle seems nice!"_ she said happily.

"She is," Conan smiled with genuine happiness. Daphne guessed that Amina hadn't caught on to the fact that Estelle was blind otherwise she would have mentioned something obliviously rude about it, no matter how inappropriate it would be. Not particularly wanting to be the one who broke the news to Amina, Daphne's eyes turned to Conan for an explanation. What had been the whole point of them meeting his mum anyway? Conan seemed to understand what Daphne was trying to ask without actually talking because he answered her.

"She was working in one of the mines on the edge of town when they dug into a pipe that held dangerous chemicals. She didn't quite manage to shut her eyes in time," he said, trying to keep the emotion out of his voice. He had had to tell that story countless to times to previous neighbours, his old school teachers and one or two of his old friends and it was getting easier and easier to pretend he was okay with it. Daphne tried to look understanding and concerned although she wasn't sure she pulled it off very well, especially when her next words came out harsh and uncaring.

"Where's your dad?" Surely he should be trying to support his family in anyway he could. Daphne reasoned that Conan's dad had to be around because who else could be providing the family with the necessities they needed just to live? Conan looked uncomfortable which made Daphne think she had over-stepped her boundaries. Still, she wasn't the kind of person who backed down and wanted to see her question through to the answer. She fixed Conan with an impatient stare and he felt like there was no way he could get out of answering her question. Conan sighed. It was what he wanted, in a way. If he didn't hide anything from his team, they'd work well together and all that nonsense he had convinced himself was important.

"He's...around. Somewhere." Amina was confused.

"_What do you mean 'somewhere'? Don't you know where he is?" _she asked. Conan picked at a part of the sofa that had ripped, making the hole worse. The white inside stuffing poked out and Conan still picked at it.

"He went out one evening and didn't come back. It was after my mum's accident...Dad kind of blamed himself, you know? They worked in the same place and he asked her to cover for him that day. Anyway, everyone in the mine lost their jobs after that and Dad decided to leave to find a better one. He hasn't succeeded yet but he sends us some money every now and then from the odd jobs he manages to get, along with a short letter explaining that he's still alive and thinking about us." Daphne tried to imagine how good it would be if _her_ dad had left and only remembered her existence when he sent her money. It would be utter bliss. There would be no more shouting at her, no more telling her she was useless. There'd be no tears (from her dad) and there'd be no empty bottles to litter the house. Daphne could live her life so easy. Maybe her dad would even get some help so he could finally get over her mum's death and after a while he'd return to the normal, loving man he used to be. They could fix up the house and make it really nice, or sell it for a smaller one that didn't have any painful reminders of Daphne's mum. He could call her his little 'Daffy' again and make those lame jokes she absolutely hated. Their lives wouldn't be the same without her mum but it could be almost as good.

Too bad it was never going to become a reality.

The washing machine began its fast spin and the whirring of the clothes being tossed around at high speed inside the metal was all that could be heard in the room. They could faintly hear Tate talking expressively to her mum upstairs. Daphne noticed that there wasn't a clock anywhere and so had no idea what the time was. There was also a lack of the familiar 'tick-tock' the object usually provided, which unsettled Daphne in such a large way that she didn't want to admit it to anyone. To miss the sound of a clock in a house where they couldn't afford to buy a decent carpet for the floor was just inconsiderate and stupid. Daphne hadn't thought she was as shallow as that but apparently she was.

Rather tired of being outside her Pokéball for such a long time, Amina took it upon herself to get in it. She had all but forgotten her stay at the Pokémon Centre and how she had been looked after so well; it seemed like a decade ago. Daphne pocketed the ball to make sure they didn't misplace it by accident. She groaned and threw her head back on the sofa, wincing when a spring dug into it. She lifted her head painfully, rubbing the back to try and ease the pain. Great. She was probably bleeding and she doubted that Conan owned any cotton wool.


	7. Field Agents

**Note: I know, I know! I promised there'd be like a million updates this month...Who knew I'd get a life? What with my little brother's sports day, prom and going to the theatre, I had no time to do any writing! Ok, poor excuses I know. At least this chapter is longer than usual.  
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Field Agents

Daphne was happily in her freshly cleaned normal clothes once more and had dumped the horrible smiley face tee in the nearest bin. She was ready to search for the field agents that would teach her, Conan and Amina everything they knew about working for Team Rocket. Daphne had decided they had wasted enough time – loads of the other kids from the training school had probably already found their mentors and were that much closer to realising their dream. She convinced Conan that they leave immediately and go find their mentors. She rationalized that Miss Billow wouldn't have let them out in the big world if there was no hope of them finding them. They just had to put their heads together and think of a way to meet two people who had no idea what they looked like, where they were or when they would reveal themselves. It sounded pretty tough.

/

"Do you really think this is going to work?" asked Daphne, rightfully doubting their plan. Conan was more optimistic than his partner and laughed openly.

"How could it not?" he said, cheerfully tapping the wooden sign they had crafted together. They were in the middle of the town and had put their 'LOOKING FOR FIELD AGENTS' sign where it could easily be seen. It was Amina's idea to be so obvious about what they were trying to do. They agreed unanimously that they had no other options and thus created their sign. Local residents passed by the two seemingly innocent teens and their purple Pokémon, wondering – sometimes aloud – what kind of field agents they were searching for. Conan would smile wryly while Daphne explained that it was on a need-to-know basis; the townspeople most certainly did not need to know.

Having lunch in the café opposite Daphne and Conan were what looked like a brother and sister, sipping at cold drinks. The café itself was small-scale and rather dim as the owner couldn't afford to pay for better lighting. Several tables and chairs were packed into the small room and there was only just enough room at the back for the main counter.

On first glance, the two people were very similar. They had black hair, dark eyes, were wearing mainly black and had matching haughty expressions. However on closer inspection the young man and woman were very different. The woman was slightly tanned with long black hair and even darker eyes. She wore a black and white Victorian style dress, long white socks and flat black shoes with big white bows. Her dark eyes were seemingly staring off to space but in reality, were watching Daphne and Conan's every move. The man was paler than the woman and had short jet black hair. His eyes were the colour of tea. Like his companion, he wore black and white clothes: a black zipper jumper, black skinny trousers and black and white boots. On his head he wore a pair of black goggles, which didn't particular match his outfit. His eyes were also on Conan and Daphne.

"That has to be them," the man said quietly. The woman purposefully took a sip of her drink before making a response. She drank it slowly, mulling the liquid around for some time. She watched as Daphne rolled her eyes at Conan and pushed him less playfully than necessary.

"Yep," replied the woman finally. The man tore his eyes away from the teenagers for a moment to look at his companion. Her face was free of emotion yet he knew that in her mind, a million thoughts were going on. He smiled to himself before regaining his composure and staring back out the window.

"Shouldn't we go out and meet them then?" he asked.

"Wait," the woman said slowly. The man sighed.

"Laurel, we've been waiting for two days. I'm getting sick of just watching them!" he complained. Laurel turned her head slightly to look at her partner. He realised he had gone too far but wasn't about to back down now. He kept her gaze and Laurel's face twitched – the closest she came to a smile. She bowed her head and when her hair fell in front of her shoulders, the glimpse of a smile was gone as quickly as it had come.

"You win, Travis." Laurel rose to her feet and threw down a couple of counterfeit bills on the table to cover the cost of their drinks. Travis followed her, a little less gracefully. They walked out into the town centre, blinking a little at the harsh change in light. They walked purposefully up to Daphne, Conan and Amina who were slightly intimidated by the opposing couple. Being straight out of the peewee training school, they knew not to show their fear and instead stood their ground against the strangers. Daphne sized them up, trying to determine whether they were a threat.

"Do you want something?" asked Conan, ruder than he had intended. Laurel observed Conan's behaviour carefully, assessing everything from the tone of his voice to the way he was standing. Her eyes darted to Daphne and saw the annoyed look almost permanently fixed on the younger girl's face. It wasn't a lot but it was a start.

"We're the field agents you've been looking for," explained Travis. Daphne and Conan looked at each other. Could they trust these two people? They hadn't noticed until now that their plan was flawed – how could they know for definite that the people who came forward were the ones they wanted? Amina didn't think like that and grinned at the older couple, oblivious to the concerns of her trainers.

"_That's great; I'm so tired of looking for you guys. It was sooo boring!"_ she said conversationally. Conan and Daphne ignored her so Laurel and Travis followed suit. Daphne asked them how they knew for sure they were the right type of field agents.

"Team Rocket, right?" was Travis' reply. Daphne stuck her nose in the air, not impressed. The field agents she had had in mind looked a lot more like the part than the real ones standing before her, in Daphne's opinion anyway. They weren't even wearing the Team Rocket uniform! Conan on the other hand, felt as if he was in the presence of truly great people. They were the key to saving his family and it was comforting to know that he was one step closer to achieving his ultimate goal. Travis offered his hand out to Conan to shake.

"I'm Travis and this is Laurel," he introduced them. Conan nodded and reached for Travis' hand.

"I'm Conan; that's Daphne and Amina," he motioned to each of the girls he was introducing as Travis' hand clamped down on his. Conan gasped: it was like a vice. Travis' face gave nothing away, if anything he looked positively neutral. If it hadn't been for Conan's pained expression, Daphne and Amina would have never known anything was wrong.

They immediately felt protective over their teammate and Amina used Lick on Travis while Daphne aimed a kick at his leg, screaming at him. Behind Travis, Laurel retrieved a single Pokéball from who knows where and let loose a Nidorino. She spoke to him in such a low voice that it was a miracle he heard the command at all. It was evident he did though, as the next moment he short a Poison Sting at Amina. Amina staggered back, surprised and angry. Her fury fuelled her enough to numb some of the pain she felt and she glared at the Nidorino before attacking him with Lick – or trying to, at least. The fact was Amina was simply too weak and Nidorino too fast for her attack to make contact.

A loud whistle was heard and the group looked towards the direction it had come from. An Officer Jenny was standing there, armed only with a Growlithe and a fierce expression.

"Just **what** is going on here?" she demanded. Travis stepped forward and smiled apologetically.

"Sorry to alarm you, Officer Jenny. My sister and I were simply messing around with our cousins. It won't happen again," he humbly said. Officer Jenny eyed him suspiciously but when none of the others spoke to contradict his story, she had to take his word for it. She warned them all that it had better not happen again.

"I'll be keeping an eye on you," she said, pointing at Travis. He smiled at her pleasantly until she walked away with her Growlithe. As soon as her head was turned, Travis dropped his smile and looked back at the group. Conan was clutching his injured hand and staring at him reproachfully; Daphne was shooting him an icy glare; Amina and Nidorino were glowering at each other and Laurel was standing among them all, looking like her mind was elsewhere.

"What the heck was that for?" asked Conan viciously. Travis shrugged his shoulders.

"You were stupid enough to shake my hand. How can you trust someone so easily – even if they're supposed to be on your side? You've got a lot to learn," he said with regret. Daphne narrowed her eyes and stepped towards him, trying her best to look intimidating.

"You didn't have to break his hand in order to prove a point!" she said defensively.

"Actually I kind of did. That's why I'm a mentor and you're a mentee. You learn how I teach you, or you don't learn at all. Got it?" Daphne muttered horrible insults to him under her breath but backed off. She could tell he was in the right and as her teacher she had to play by his rules or fail the training. She wasn't thrilled about it though. Daphne turned her attention to Amina who was still scowling at the Nidorino. Laurel was crouched beside her Pokémon and was stroking his head in a soothing manner. Noticing that Laurel had yet to say anything, Daphne rounded on her in the hope that she was the weaker character.

"Why did you attack Amina with your Nidorino? What's your problem?" she asked nastily. Laurel's head snapped up and her black eyes flashed. She got to her feet and took two long strides until she was in Daphne's face. Her expression was blank but Daphne could see the emotion hidden in the depths of Laurel's abyss-like eyes.

"Learn to control your Pokémon, and I'll control mine," hissed Laurel, slowly and deliberately. Her voice was chilling to Daphne and she quickly discovered that between Travis, Laurel and their strong Nidorino, their mentors was a pretty good – or bad, depending on your viewpoint – team of field agents. To learn that within the first five minutes of meeting their mentors also spoke volumes and Daphne had high hopes about this. Conan with his smarting hand and Amina with her new found hatred for Nidorino thought otherwise.

_You learn how I teach you, or you don't learn at all._ Travis' words from two weeks ago kept spinning around in Conan's mind. He swore that if it wasn't for his family he would have beaten Travis into a bloody pulp. Travis really got under Conan's skin; everything he said just seemed to drip superiority – it was like he thought he was better than everyone else. What made it worse was that he _was_ better than everyone else. He could invent a crime to commit, fine-tune the details and go about doing it flawlessly. Conan hated the way Travis had decided they would do the training: separately. Conan trained with Travis, Daphne with Laurel and Amina with Nidorino. The only time they were all together was during breakfast and sometimes not even then. Conan didn't know how they were expected to know how to work as a team if they didn't train as a team. It went against everything they had learned at the training school but whenever he brought it up with Travis, he got the same reply:

"That was then, this is now: times change. Give me thirty press-ups!" Conan had done so many press-ups in the past fortnight that he was actually forming biceps. He was also in better shape – not that he had been unfit before but now he was almost toned. Travis liked to put him through rigorous exercises unlike anything Conan had experienced before. It they weren't performed to Travis' satisfaction then he was 'punished' which meant that there would be no evening meal for him or Conan's teammates. This rule made sure Conan worked as hard as he possibly could, if not harder.

Daphne's training was a little more contemporary. Laurel mostly got her to sit in a field with a blindfold on for forty-five minutes every day. Daphne wasn't sure what this was achieving but knew better than to question her mentor's methods. Once that was done, Laurel and Daphne would practise being subtle. Laurel had decided that Daphne was far too brash and obvious; everything she did was noticeable. It was tough going but Daphne was slowly becoming more and more discreet: she even managed to sneak up on Travis. With his keen sense of hearing this was practically unheard of and Daphne had the nagging suspicion that he was fully aware of her presence. Travis would do anything if Laurel told him to; it was like she had some sort of hold over him.

Amina was getting the more standard way of training from Nidorino by battling with him every day. It was an uphill struggle but soon everyone could see a considerable improvement in Amina's strength. She was becoming a real tough Pokémon to battle and Nidorino only showed his approval recently when Amina came close to winning their battle. He could tell she had been working hard all this time and that hard work was finally paying off. Nidorino was satisfied with his student and praised her continuously for her progress. Amina had learned that Nidorino wasn't as bad a Pokémon as she had first thought and had gotten over her hatred for them. She knew that first impressions were often wrong.

Whether they enjoyed their training, understood it or developed vital skills during it, one thing stayed constant in their minds. It was a few days into their training that Laurel and Travis received the postcard from the peewee training school, describing that they had a month to do whatever preparations they needed before the students were to return to the school. Once there, they would battle with other students who had also been educated by field agent mentors. Winning battles meant nothing as they earned points for every move, every sneak attack and dirty shot. The higher the score the more likely it was they would be chosen to become a part of Team Rocket for good. After each battle they would go to a higher stage until they reached the last, the Final Battle.

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**P.S. Why can't I use - or * as a break? I used to be able to...I had to make do with /. Totally not as effective.**


	8. Fighting Dirty

**Note: Like it says on my profile (don't know how many of you actually look at it :P) my proof-reader has gone on holiday so if there are any stupid mistakes then I apologise. I'm really surprised this fic got this far coz around the 4th chapter I felt like giving up XD Anyway'z...on with the story!  
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Fighting Dirty

Travis was pacing up and down nervously in front of his team. They only had five more battles to endure until it was all over and the points would be counted. He wanted Daphne and Conan to win. He _needed_ them to win. They had worked too hard for it to all go to waste now. Travis wouldn't accept failure. Conan watched his mentor pace, respect filling his eyes. Sure the last month had been hard work and yeah most of it involved Travis yelling in his face but it had all been worth it. Even Conan could see just how much better he; Daphne and Amina were than the other trainers. They had won eight out of the ten battles they had already had that day and were feeling pretty confident in them selves. Amina was busily practising her dodges so she could be on top form for their next battle and Daphne was seemingly staring off into space. In reality, Daphne was thinking up schemes of how to best their up-coming opponents in the most sneaky and devious way possible. Thanks to Laurel's training, Daphne had gotten rather good at being sneaky and devious. You'd think then, that with eight wins under their belt, they had no need to worry. Not so.

"Why are you pacing?" Laurel asked her partner quietly. They were sitting in their sound-proof cubicle under the stands while they waited for their battle to begin. As per the rules the door was locked until it was time for them to fight, when they would be escorted to the arena to meet their challengers. All forms of communication had been confiscated: this meant phones, walkie-talkies, PDAs and the like. This was to ensure vital information could not be shared among all and any participants. Travis looked at Laurel briefly and he stopped in his tracks.

"Because," he said through gritted teeth. "I know who our next battle is going to be with." Daphne made no movement to show she was taken by surprise although she was. Conan cried 'what?' and Amina crashed into the wall. Questions about how Travis knew, for how long and when he found out were shot out at him and it wasn't until Travis gave Conan and Amina stern looks that they shut up.

"I'm a Team Rocket field agent – of course I managed to find out. As to who they are...I'm not sure if I should tell you. It might make things worse." Travis tried his best to appear as if he really was concerned about what they thought but he was actually putting them through one final test. They had learned so much within their allocated month but Travis wanted them to prove that they had taken in all of it and was putting it to practise. Conan, Daphne and Amina exchanged looks and made a silent agreement. Whoever it was would not come between them and their dream job.

"Tell us," Daphne urged him softly. Travis did and it didn't make a difference to them one bit. They felt the same as if they had just been told they were going against students they didn't know. Their opponents didn't stand a chance against such strong contestants.

A hefty knock on their door alerted them that it was finally time to begin their battle. The sound of keys rattling in the lock could be heard and suddenly the door flew open to reveal a large man. He ushered everyone out of the room and the only person who noticed Laurel slip the man some money was Travis and that was only because he had asked her to long before they had arrived at the arena. Laurel knew it had something to do with how Travis had known who the opponents of this battle would be.

At a certain point Laurel and Travis had to turn off so they could join the other mentors in the stands. It was from there that they would cheer their team on and pray that they fought as dirty as they had been taught. The large man went with Daphne, Amina and Conan through a long dark tunnel. They had become used to this tunnel by now and knew exactly at which point they would be able to hear the cheering – or jeering – of the people sitting in the stands. When they reached the end of the tunnel, flooded with light, the man stopped and waited for them to step out on to the arena. As they looked from there, across the wide battle mat in the far distance were two familiar-ish people. As a result of the long distance, Conan and Daphne couldn't be sure that it was who Travis claimed it would be. To determine that they would have to meet them in the middle of the mat so they could see for themselves. Amina assured her friends that everything would work out as long as they focused on the task at hand. With a fierce determination to win, the three of them stepped out from the tunnel, ready to battle.

The stands around them exploded into applause. They had been watching the trio's performance all day and had become quickly attached to the dynamic of their team. Daphne waved modestly to her fans whilst Conan milked the crowd for all it was worth: pumping the air, bowing and flashing his winning smile at several girls he had had his eye on all day. Well, he did until Amina threatened to rip his head off if he didn't focus. They went to the middle of the mat where they would shake hands with their opponents before retreating to their half and wait for the whistle to blow to signal the beginning of the match.

Not much about the foreboding pair in front of them had changed since they had last met. Aside from the from the fact that Massimo's clothes were now yellow where they should be red, Vivian had acquired some long black and gold gloves and their Kakuna had evolved into a Beedrill, everything else had stayed the same. Thanks to the combined effect of their matching black-and-yellow colours, Vivian, Massimo and Beedrill looked more like part of a team than ever before although they still resembled pirates.

"We won't go easy on you," sneered Vivian, rubbing her fist into the opposite hand. Conan smiled.

"We wouldn't want you to." The four of them shook hands and went to their allocated sides of the mat to wait for the whistle to blow. Before it did, Daphne had a warning for Amina.

"Beedrills are really fast so I want you to be careful, okay?" she murmured. Amina nodded in understanding. It would be difficult to land an attack on Beedrill but not impossible. She could do it if she kept her head clear.

The whistle sounded, loud and shrill. Vivian wasted no time in ordering Beedrill to use Fury Attack on Amina. It would have left hefty damage had Normal-type moves had any affect on the Ghost-type Pokémon. Amina grinned and stuck her tongue out at the confused Beedrill. Vivian and Massimo realised that Normal moves wouldn't do anything to Amina and they cursed their luck. Beedrill only had one move that wasn't a Normal-type but the fact that Amina wouldn't take much damage from it wouldn't help their chances. They'd have to think outside the box in order to score high points in this battle. Conan told Amina to use Lick on Beedrill. Amina tried to obey but at the last minute Beedrill dodged the attack and Amina ended up missing. The crowd moaned sadly. Conan urged Amina to keep trying but every time she did, the same thing happened. Vivian nudged Massimo and grinned, glad Beedrill was too quick for Amina to hit. It would improve their chances tenfold.

"Beedrill use the Twineedle," called Massimo. Beedrill flew up into the air and the next time Amina came in for Lick, attacked her head on with both his stingers. The crowd booed at that although a few cheered. The move didn't hurt Amina all that much; all it really did was make her angry. She looked over at Daphne who shook her head, praying she kept calm. She wasn't ready yet. While Amina's head was turned, Beedrill used Twineedle out of his own accord, earning a wild cheer from everyone in the stands. A bit of dirty play was a great addition to any battle. Amina glared at the Pokémon and forgot for a moment that Daphne had told her not to use the tactic. Amina forgot the crowd. She forgot they were in a competition. All she could think about was taking that Beedrill down and humiliating it as she did so.

Amina floated up into the air, parallel with Beedrill. She fixed him with a cold stare before using Curse. It would make her considerably weaker but it was definitely worth it to see the pained look on Beedrill's face as the effect of Curse hit him without warning. He came out of it weaker than before but still stronger than Amina. She didn't mind because it set her up for the next move: Night Shade.

It was a move she had only just learned that day and so she wasn't accustomed to using it as of yet. Amina didn't care. She wanted to introduce Beedrill to a world of hurt. She focused on Beedrill and used Night Shade. Over on their side, Daphne was mentally killing Amina. She wasn't ready for that move and their team knew it. Amina was simply too impulsive sometimes; Daphne hoped she knew what she was doing. Conan was hitting himself on the head: he had expressly told Amina to obey everything they told her to do and not to do anything reckless. It was like she was doing the exact opposite of what he told her to do. How would they make it as field agents if they couldn't listen to their teammates?

Beedrill's entire body convulsed before he collapsed to the floor. When he looked up, his eyes were glazed over as if he wasn't seeing what was in front of him – which he wasn't. All Beedrill could see was an open sky, beckoning him to fly into it. So he did. It was a pity the 'sky' he thought he was seeing was the hard mat. Beedrill ran into it repeatedly, not understanding why he couldn't fly off into the sunset. The self-inflicted damage, added to the Curse Amina had already used on Beedrill ensured he didn't last much longer. Within moments of flying with all his might into the floor, Beedrill had fainted.

There was a brief moment of silence as the audience held their breath, waiting to see if Beedrill really was out for the count. When he didn't get up again they burst into a tremendous applause, screaming the names of Conan, Daphne and Amina. Vivian returned Beedrill to his Pokéball and the two teams met in the middle of the mat once again. Over the roar of the crowd, no-one could hear the quick conversation they shared before returning to their rooms.

"Girl, you're _so_ dead to me," declared Vivian, shaking Daphne's hand.

"Likewise," she replied.

"We no more are friends," hissed Massimo, squeezing Conan's hand as they shook.

"We never were," he said airily.

Conan, Amina and Daphne lost the next battle but won the two after that and had high hopes for the last battle. They were back in their room, waiting for Gunner – the name of the large man – to collect them. Daphne was pretty excited and showed this feeling by sitting quietly but gently bouncing her knees up and down. Her eyes glinted animatedly as they darted around the room. Amina had calmed down considerably after her battle with Beedrill and after the three battles in between, was now having a well-deserved rest. Conan couldn't stop grinning. He was so close to realising his dream. The excitement bubbled inside of him and threatened to spill over. Who knew – just over an hour from now he could be working officially for Team Rocket. Finally his family would have a chance of moving up. When Gunner eventually opened the door for them, Conan and Daphne were having a little trouble controlling their breathing. Their mentors told them to calm down: they hadn't achieved anything yet.

"Hey, since this is your last battle, Laurel and I want to tell you something," began Travis. The trio looked up at the adults expectantly. Travis scratched the back of his neck nervously and Gunner barked at him to hurry it up; the battle was going to start any time now.

"We're incredibly proud to call ourselves your mentors. You went above and beyond our expectations so whatever happens we just want you to know...You aren't half bad." Conan chuckled: it was just like Travis to start off saying something nice and then bottling out halfway through. The two teenagers and Amina understood more or less what Travis meant though. It must have been hard for him to say something almost nice so he probably meant it, too. Laurel reached forward and hugged Daphne tightly. As she wasn't used to such an activity, Laurel's hug was a bit stiff and yet Daphne was touched. Laurel pinched Daphne's cheek and smiled at her.

"You're an amazing girl," she said softly. Daphne had never had anyone tell her she was amazing – not since her mum died. If this had been a month ago Daphne probably wouldn't have been able to hide how pleased she was at Laurel's compliment. She didn't want anyone to see how much being called 'amazing' had affected her. Daphne realised what a long way she had come. When she had first arrived at the school she had just been another angry teen trying to fit in with everyone else. Now she was more confident, strong, mentally capable and deceitful than she ever dreamed of.

_Aw, what the heck_, Daphne thought and hastily threw her arms around Laurel who, to her credit, looked dually surprised at having a young girl wrapped around her neck. Travis laughed quietly to himself and turned to Conan. Gunner sighed heavily to remind them all they had somewhere to be. He didn't want to lose his job because of some emotional kids – it paid too well for that. Without saying a word, Travis reached on top of his head and took his black goggles off. He stared at them thoughtfully for a moment – Gunner glared meaningfully at a non-existent watch on his wrist – and handed it to Conan. Conan took it, stunned. Before he could utter any words of thanks, Gunner had had enough and pushed them down the tunnel. Travis and Laurel were swept away and Conan was left gazing at his mentors goggles. With silent acceptance, he slipped them on to his own head and was startled soon after when Daphne linked arms with him. Amina floated to his other arm and as a team they walked out to the arena for their last battle of the day.

"Urgh, not you lot," complained Zoe the moment she set eyes on her opponents.


	9. Silent Wishes

**Note: Firstly, sorry for the long wait! The suspense must have been killing you :P Not much else to say really, except enjoy!  
**

* * *

Silent Wishes

Conan stared hard at the twins, their Zubat flapping its wings just above them menacingly. So this was who their final battle would be with. He couldn't say he was all that surprised, seeing as how his team were such a crowd pleaser and Zoe and Zack had ties with the training school. They didn't look any different from the last time, perhaps a little more pasty-faced if that was possible. The two opposing teams met in the middle, as was the custom, to shake hands. Zoe turned her nose up at the thought of touching Daphne's hand and flat out refused to, although her brother wasn't as picky. When Zoe caught him solemnly shaking Conan's hand she glared at him with such venom that Zack hastily retrieved his hand and stared down at his shoes, looking remorseful. Daphne almost felt bad for him – almost, but not quite. Zoe flipped her fiery hair out behind her, her green eyes blazing.

"Ready to be humiliated?" she asked them with mock-sweetness. Sensing conflict the crowd cheered wildly. Most of them didn't like Zoe and Zack much and were counting on Daphne and Conan to put them in their place. Conan and Daphne didn't want to disappoint them. Zack and Zoe were just two stuck up rich kids who thought they were better than everyone simply because of their family connections. It was about time someone set them straight. Amina scoffed.

"_Yeah, like _that's_ gonna happen! I've been waiting for this moment a long time,"_ she said smugly. She was really looking forward to taking down the twins and their Zubat. She had been building up towards this moment and finally, her persistence was going to pay off. She couldn't wait to embarrass the twins in front of the entire school. Zoe smirked and nudged her brother.

"They don't stand a chance, do they Zack?" Zack grinned and shook his head. Daphne frowned. She knew there wasn't going to be time to ask what she wanted – after a quick look she saw the referee ready with his whistle – and urged Conan and Amina to go to their side of the mat. What she wanted to find out would have to wait for after the battle.

With both teams on their correct sides, the whistle was blown and the crowd erupted, many of them cheering on Daphne and Conan. Zoe, ever conceited, thought they were cheering for her and grinned to herself. She ordered Zubat to start the battle off with Confuse Ray. A light ball of astral energy emitted from Zubat's mouth and travelled towards Amina, who saw it coming and tried to dodge. The light ball followed and hit her square on. Just like that, Amina became confused. It was only the beginning of the battle but it was like a bad omen for the rest of it. Daphne cringed, knowing that Amina getting confused was a sign. Zubat's moves were also likely to be super affective on the Ghost-type Pokémon. All she and Conan could do is hope for the best.

The best didn't exactly look like it was going to come to them, especially when Amina started spinning around in circles crying '_wheeeee_'. On the other side of the mat, Zoe and Zack giggled while the audience stared on dismally. Eventually Amina got too dizzy to maintain her position in the air and crash-landed dangerously on the mat. Daphne gripped Conan's arm worriedly. She heaved a sigh of relief moments later when Amina got up, sniggering at her own behaviour. Taking a risk with Amina's mental stability, Conan told her to use Curse on Zubat. It was a gamble; one that Conan wanted to win.

It was a pity then, that Amina turned to face Daphne and before anyone knew what was going on, used Lick on her cheek. Daphne scrunched up her nose and pushed Amina away, trying to snap her out of her confusion. Zack and Zoe were in stitches and a few others in the stands began tittering as well. It was pretty funny to watch a Pokémon lick its owner in confusion. Daphne and Conan glared at the twins who didn't hide the fact they found the entire thing so hilarious. Almost lazily Zoe instructed Zubat to go after Amina with Wing Attack. Normally Amina would have just moved out of the way but because she was confused, all she did was stare dopily up as Zubat descended. Conan groaned inwardly and Daphne buried her face on his shoulder. She couldn't watch Zubat slice at Amina with large, imposing wings. Amina fell to the mat once more, a look of pain displayed on her face. She had snapped out of her confusion and even though she wanted to get her own back at Zubat, was too weak to do anything about it. Amina slowly got up and let her owners know she was ready to attack back. She shook herself off and realised she wasn't hurt all that badly; it had mostly just been shock at first. She wanted Zubat to pay.

Daphne called out to Amina, telling her to use Lick followed quickly by Night Shade. Amina nodded and shot towards Zubat. Amina managed to attack Zubat with Lick but before she could get around to using Night Shade, Zoe had already advised Zubat to attack with Bite. Since Amina was dangerously close after Lick it wasn't all that difficult for Zubat to open her mouth and bite down on her. Zoe grinned superiorly. She had guessed that her rivals would get Amina to use Lick at some point and had simply been waiting for that to happen. By itself, Bite was already an incredibly strong move but as a Ghost-type Pokémon, Amina was particularly weak to the Dark move. Daphne winced when a look of pure hurt passed over Amina's face before she fell to the floor for the third – and final – time.

Amina hadn't fainted yet but she was close. She didn't have the energy to get back up and was barely able to keep her eyes open. Conan bit his lip. They had lost three other battles but none of them were this bad. Conan started when he realised Daphne had left his side and had rushed over to their Pokémon. Gently, Daphne cradled Amina in her arms and looked tearfully at how battered she was. Rage bubbled inside the young teen – rage unlike she had ever felt before. Her hands began to shake with the force of the emotion. Little by little the quiet, serene girl Laurel had taught her to be was stripped away leaving the old Daphne behind: the one who wasn't shy about sharing her emotions or expressing them physically. She directed a look filled with utter contempt towards the twins and Zoe, noticing where Daphne was, smiled unpleasantly. She whispered in her brother's ear hurriedly and he stared back at her, dumbstruck. Deciding to ignore his lack of support, Zoe rolled her eyes and turned to Zubat.

"Wing Attack," she said wickedly. Zubat was unsure but when Zoe told her again with more certainty, she knew she had to obey. Sorrowfully Zubat soared up into the air above Amina and Daphne and paused for a moment. Conan had his mouth open in shock. Zoe couldn't seriously want her Pokémon to attack his partner. Her steady expression said she did. Daphne's head was facing Zubat defiantly, almost daring her to follow her owner's insane command. Conan could tell a plan had formed in Daphne's mind and he made a resolve not to interfere, how ever much he might want to. He'd probably only get caught in the cross-fire. When Daphne wanted Conan's help, he would know about it.

The crowd held their breath as they watched Zubat sail down towards Daphne and Amina. Zack hid his face in his hands, not able to bring himself to watch the events unfold before him. Zubat dropped like a rock and as she was about to land her attack, Daphne rose to her feet with her fist above her. The force of the Pokémon's weight added to the speed she had been going at hit Daphne with surprising strength and a sickening _crunch_ was heard. Zubat bounced off Daphne's fist and fell to the floor. Zoe screamed angrily at her plan being foiled and when Zack heard that he opened his eyes. Conan ran over to where Daphne was to see if she was okay. The audience were tensely silent.

"I'm fine," murmured Daphne, swaying on her feet. Conan could tell she was far from fine. Her hand looked like it was broken or the very least sprained. Conan was furious. How dare Zoe do such a thing? Sure Team Rockets were supposed to be devious but this was going too far. It was unnecessary, cruel and most importantly it hurt Conan's teammate. Conan slowly walked over to where Zack and Zoe were standing with a face like thunder.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" he asked, his voice wavering with hatred. Some people in the stands cheered at that comment and Conan could have sworn he heard Travis' voice telling him to 'punch 'em in the face'. Zack looked at his sister nervously, silently begging for her to say something. Zoe had been taking aback by the threatening tone of voice Conan had used on her and it had rendered her mute. Conan swallowed, trying to clear his head. He shouldn't do anything impulsive, anything he might regret later. He risked a glance behind him, where first aid officials had rushed on to the scene to tend to Daphne's injury. Amina it seemed, had passed out, as had Zubat. Conan returned his gaze to the twins and glared at them. Zack hastily returned Zubat to her ball. Finally Conan's anger got the better of him and his hand shot out, grabbing the front of Zack's shirt. He shook the weaker boy violently. Zack looked like he was about to cry.

"Don't hurt him!" Zoe suddenly burst out.

"Why not?" demanded Conan. "You hurt my partner. Its only fair I hurt yours, right Zackie?" Conan laughed manically. Zack's lip quivered and he stared pleadingly at his sister for help.

"Right Zack?" yelled Conan, his face now red with anger. Zack's face paled and his eyes looked anywhere but at Conan's face. Conan shook him roughly again and this time, Zack actually _did_ cry. His eyes filled with salty tears that slid down his pasty face.

"Leave him alone," begged Zoe. "He can't talk." Conan frowned, puzzled.

"What?" he asked stupidly. Zack was still crying although he made no noise.

"You heard me. He can't speak. He doesn't have a voice. Now put him down or else I'll–" Zoe didn't get to finish her sentence. She ended up on the floor after Daphne had punched her in the face, using her good hand of course. First aid officials came running after her but it was too late. Zoe was already knocked unconscious. When Zack saw this, he stopped his snivelling. He must have realised that the same thing could happen to him and he didn't want that. The first aid officials sternly led Daphne away while some more came on the mat to carry Zoe off in a stretcher. Eventually the only ones on the mat were Conan and Zack.

Conan eyed the other boy suspiciously. He was completely identical to his sister, apart from obviously being a boy and having red short hair. They were both as pale as each other and wore matching blue uniforms, just to show to the world how much they were like each other. But were they really all that similar? Conan quickly realised that he had actually never heard Zack say a single word in all the time he had known him. Zoe usually did all of the talking for him and since Zack's expression matched hers, everyone had assumed they not only shared appearances, but brains too. Was that really the case?

Conan shook Zack's hand and walked back to his respective tunnel. He would never know.

Gunner met Conan at the entrance to the tunnel. The two of them walked wordlessly through the tunnel and Conan was a little surprised when Gunner guided him not to his room but off to the left, up three flights of echoic stairs that led down a corridor and finally to the infirmary. The first aid officials hired to work at the arena were some of the most efficient people in their field and Conan was surprised to see Daphne and Amina already treated and in beds opposite Zoe's. Amina and Zoe were asleep but Daphne was sitting up and talking animatedly to Laurel and Travis. There were about a dozen other beds in the room but they were all empty. The room itself was spotlessly clean and the colours consisted of mostly white. Conan turned to thank Gunner for taking him to visit his injured friends but the large man had already disappeared so Conan joined his team.

Travis was immensely impressed with the way Conan had man-handled Zack and it was as he was clapped Conan on the back for this that the boy himself entered the room. Zack looked paler than usual and anxiously made his way over to his sister's bed, carefully avoiding the gaze of the other four people currently burning a hole in the back of his head. Zack sat down on a small stool at Zoe's bedside and waited patiently for her to wake up. She wasn't going to be happy to discover her nose was swollen, purple and in a splint, Zack knew. Daphne got the attention of her allies back on her by announcing if anyone wanted to write on her cast once it dried. Conan smiled at her; it wasn't even the sort of cast you could write on. It covered Daphne's entire hand making it look unbelievably bulky. It was her right hand, the hand she used to write with. Conan was going to have to be her assigned scriber from then on.

"I knew you weren't going to win," said Laurel suddenly. Travis, Conan and Daphne stared at her and were astonished to see her mouth split into a wide smile. "But it was worth it to see that punch you landed on that ginger girl!" Travis and Conan agreed vehemently, which made Daphne laugh. She was proud of herself for dealing with Zoe with such restraint. If it hadn't been for her broken hand, all the first aid officials and Laurel's training, Zoe would have had a lot more than a fractured nose.

Looking over at the other girl, Daphne couldn't help wondering what her story was. What made her be so evil? And why couldn't Zack talk? Daphne doubted she would ever get an answer to her questions.


	10. The Results Are In!

The Results Are In!

Conan, Daphne and Amina were wedged in with all the other former students of the peewee training school, anxiously awaiting the results of the competition. They were all packed into the stands tightly along with their mentors with the seven coaches in the middle of the battle arena. They were standing in a line on a large raised platform behind symbolic Pokémon for each group they represented: Magmar for Red, Raichu for Orange, Sandshlash for Yellow, Scyther for Green, Vaporeon for Blue, Poliwrath for Indigo and Muk for Violet. A camera was focused on them and was projected on to a big screen at one end of the arena so everyone could see clearly what was going on. There were also similar cameras fixed at regular intervals in the stands so they could film the new Team Rocket field agents' reaction once their names had been called.

Miss Billow had dressed up for the occasion – much like all the other coaches – and was wearing a sparkling red dress with a slit going up one side. It was all Conan could do to keep himself from drooling. Conan, Daphne and Amina had managed to get a position at the very front, mostly because the first aid officials had been concerned about Daphne's hand. They didn't want it to get any more hurt, especially as it was vulnerable right now. Unfortunately, this also meant Zack and Zoe were in the front too although Conan, Daphne and Amina made a point of ignoring them. Zoe's nose was in a large splint bandage, which blended almost exactly with her pale face and made her look ridiculous. Vivian and Massimo, who were two rows behind, repeatedly had to stifle their laughter as they caught glances of Zoe's nose.

Daphne reached out and grabbed Conan's hand with her good one. Conan's grip was clammy and Daphne instantly realised how nervous he was. She squeezed his hand comfortingly, trying to silently convince him not to worry. Everything would work out. On Conan's other side, Amina was flirting outrageously with Travis and Laurel's Nindorino. She had forgotten all about the competition and her fights, too caught up in her mission to woo the Poison-type. When Daphne realised what her Pokémon was doing she sighed exasperatedly and forcefully pulled Amina over to her side, away from Nidorino. Amina pouted childishly but, sensing the tension with Daphne and Conan, didn't make any movement to go back to Nidorino.

Out on the stage in the middle of the arena, Miss Billow now had possession of a microphone and began to speak into it. Her voice rang out loudly, clear as a bell and if the audience were listening carefully they could hear the hint of nervousness laced there.

"Welcome all, my name is Miss Billow and can I just say a great big congratulation to you all. We saw some amazing battles today and you should all be proud of yourselves for giving it your all. When the points were counted, we found that there were many of you who had a high score and so we had to accept more field agents than we originally planned. No matter what the outcome, we want you to know that you are all win–" The microphone was quickly snatched from Miss Billow's hand by the gentleman with blonde bouffant hair standing next to her. He gave Miss Billow a scornful look for such a light-hearted yet unnecessary speech. Judging from his gaudy orange suit, he was the coach for Orange group. His face was set as he spoke.

"I'm Mr Neil. The winners in Orange group are..." Mr Neil got straight to the point, reeling off the names in a toneless list. Miss Billow shot him a dark look as he did so, not that Mr Neil noticed her. The large screen showed a blonde girl and black-haired boy hugging their Venonat joyfully before making their way down the stairs, onto the ground to stand proudly on the stage with their monotonic coach and arrogant mentors. The coach for Yellow group took her turn, announcing Rudolph and Melinda had successfully made it, too, and they also made their way to the stage with a look of sheer accomplishment fixed on their faces and their mentors at their sides. Rudolph didn't even seem to mind that he gained more than his fair share of giggles at his name. It wasn't exactly a surprise that Zack and Zoe had won it in Green yet it was surprising that they didn't have any mentors to support them. They worked alone.

No-one in Blue group made it. This fact earned a collective yet openly-mean spirited booing from the audience. Most of them were thanking their lucky stars they hadn't been in Blue – it was bad enough not to become a field agent but for no-one else in your group to either spoke volumes about what you had learned together. The coach stood there behind his Vaporeon, trying not blush and failing. Three pairs in Indigo had the honour of becoming field agents and the coach for the team couldn't keep the smug look off her face. This was a surprising but commendable success for the group as it was the highest number of accepted students so far. Then again, it wasn't too surprising as Conan and Daphne realised that their toughest fights had come from those in the Indigo group. They had definitely been the ones to watch out for. Violet group had two pairs – Wayne-and-Fiona and Angelina-and-Bradley.

Finally, the microphone was handed back to Miss Billow, who was struggling to keep her balance on the stage and not fall off. The stage was now beginning to get somewhat crowded with the assortment of fifteen Pokémon, nearly the same amount of students and even more adults standing on it. The microphone was handed down the line and Miss Billow grabbed it from Mr Neil with as much dignity as she could muster. She looked rather peeved with him for cutting her off like that and then the other coaches had the nerve to simply forget that she had missed her turn. Conan's heart fluttered as Miss Billow's voice filled the stadium while Daphne's fluttered more with nerves than anything else. Her grip on Conan's hand tightened and Amina began to really pay attention now. This was it.

"The field agents in Red group that have made it as field agents are..." Daphne gulped as Miss Billow took a purposeful dramatic pause. The Red group students held their breath, united by this single act that would last mere seconds. "...Massimo and Vivian!" Cheering ensued from the couple, who could be seen on the big screen moments later sharing a passionate kiss with their Beedrill hovering above them. The boys in the arena – and a few girls – made sick noises whilst the kiss went on, until at last they parted and made their way down the stairs, followed by Beedrill and their mentors – who surprisingly looked every bit as pirates as Vivian and Massimo did.

Daphne's shoulders sagged. She should have known it was too good to be true. Amina's eyes filled with tears as she realised all their hard work had been for nothing. Conan's stomach felt like it had relocated to his toes. His family would suffer for a long time now before he could find another way to help quickly. His fingers slipped out of Daphne's grasp but she held them sturdy, interlocking their fingers. She wanted him to know that she would still there for him, even though they hadn't –

"And Conan and Daphne!" bellowed Miss Billow. The two gasped sharply and their faces were displayed on the big screen. Amina screamed with joy, jumping up and down in ecstasy. Daphne and Conan turned to each other and hugged, expressing their happiness the only way they knew. Laurel and Travis encouraged the team to follow them down to the stage and the trio gladly obliged. They hurried down to join the other successful students, beaming for all they were worth. This was the moment they had been waiting for. It was _this_ that made everything worth it. Nothing could spoil this for them: they were that pleased. They grinned as a cameraman appeared from nowhere and snapped photos of the group of winners. Daphne hugged Amina to her chest, Conan's arm swung around her shoulders casually while Travis and Laurel stood delightedly behind them, their Nidorino posing at the front. The flash of the camera blinded them momentarily while the cameraman moved on to take Vivian and Massimo's picture. When Conan finally had his eyesight back, he found he wasn't as jealous as he would have been under normal circumstances when he caught Mr Neil kissing Miss Billow on her cheek. Conan sighed blissfully and turned to his partner.

"We did good," he said grinned. Daphne smiled back at him, along with Amina.

"We did _great_," corrected Daphne.

/

They were going back to Kanto. Well, Daphne was going _back_; Conan and Amina were travelling there for the first time. From there they would be sent missions that had to be carried out in order for Team Rocket to successfully complete whatever bigger scheme they had planned. Since they were going to Daphne's home-region they had made a quick pit stop to Conan's house so he could pack what little things he owned. They had already said goodbye to Travis, Laurel and Nidorino when they dropped them off just outside Dearborn Town. It hadn't been tearful or felt final. Each person and Pokémon understood that sometimes in life you had to say goodbye to those who meant a lot to you – and if you were lucky, fate would let you meet again. Each one of them hoped they were lucky.

As a sort of graduation present, Laurel had presented Conan and Daphne with exact copies of their clothes – just dyed black. They caused the teenagers to look more professional and they matched their mentors' cool appearance. It was this gesture that raised the question of why the two Team Rocket field agents didn't wear the official uniform like all the other mentors and Travis gave Conan a pitying look when he quizzed them.

"Give us some credit, yeah? We're a lot smarter than those other dopes. If we went around in Team Rocket uniform don't you think the police would be all over us?" Conan had to admit Travis raised a good point and left it at that.

Finally, Conan had packed his bag and was ready to go. All that was left was for him to say his goodbyes. He started with his mum, hugging her tightly and promising that the first thing he'd get Tate to buy was a phone so he could call them every week. Daphne and Amina looked on from the scene before them, feeling like intruders on this tender moment between mother and son. Estelle's dull grey eyes were filled with tears as she kissed her son's cheek before whispering that she loved him. A tight knot pulled in Daphne's stomach as an evil voice at the back of her mind reminded her that she would never hear those words from her own mum again. Conan pulled upright and after one gentle stroke of Estelle's long lilac hair, turned his back on her and motioned for Daphne and Amina to follow him out of the bedroom. Once Conan said goodbye to his sister there would be nothing holding them back. They would be free to wreak havoc in Kanto and instil fear in the hearts of everyone they came across – while getting paid to do so. It was their dream.

The only thing that was holding them back from living it was the fact that Tate had gone AWOL. Amina became irritated by Tate's disappearance: she couldn't wait to play nasty pranks on people. Daphne was also annoyed because she wanted to start living her ideal life as soon as she could; this was just getting in her way. She didn't understand why Conan felt it so important that he said goodbye to Tate – if he was going to buy a phone then what was the point? However, Conan insisted that they couldn't leave until he said goodbye to Tate and as they were a team, Daphne and Amina were forced to go along with it.

They searched every run-down room in the house and found no sign of Tate or even her Jigglypuff. Conan could sense his partners' growing exasperation and against his better judgement decided to give up on his search. The three of them wandered outside Conan's house where their lift to Kanto would soon arrive. Daphne was secretly hoping Team Rocket sent them a helicopter: she'd always wanted to ride in one.

They didn't wait long until a large shadow covered them and the trio scattered as it descended. Much to Daphne's dismay she saw that it wasn't a helicopter but the very same Charizard that had flown her a few months ago. The battle scars and partially missing ear gave it away. It bowed its head slightly when it made eye contact with Daphne and she patted its snout in return. She then scooped Amina up into her arms before throwing her leg over the back of the Charizard and patiently waiting for Conan to do the same. He had one hand on the Charizard's arm, taking in the last glimpse of his home he would have for a long time. Then, with a heavy sigh he turned his head and started to boost himself up onto the Charizard.

"WAIT!" a shrill voice called. Conan froze, his head snapping around. Tate was running towards him, Jigglypuff cradled in her arms. Her appearance caused not only Conan, but Daphne and Amina to do a double-take at her. Gone where her cute purple pigtails; all-pink outfit and overall childish appearance. Tate's hair was out and reached the lower half of her neck. The only items of clothing in pink she had were a light pink waistcoat and matching trainers; the rest of her outfit consisted of a white t-shirt and blue jeans. Tate now looked more like her age than a little kid. Amina was impressed by the transformation.

"_You look like a teenager!" _commented Amina blandly. Tate beamed.

"That's because I am one. I turned thirteen a few weeks ago," she replied. Becoming a teenager had obviously influenced her more mature look. Tate glared pointedly at Conan. He hadn't made a visit to her or sent a gift to celebrate the occasion and she was pretty miffed with him for it. Conan grinned easily.

"What, you thought I forgot?" he asked cockily. Tate shifted uncomfortably.

"You tell me," mumbled Tate, all previous hostility now melted away. Conan ruffled his sister's neatly straightened hair affectionately, annoying her by messing it up. She brushed his hand away irritably and Conan chuckled.

"Of course I didn't. Here." Conan touched Tate's cheek softly before producing a small package wrapped in shiny silver paper from his backpack. Tate grabbed it gleefully, tearing at the paper recklessly. Inside was a pink box and Tate hastily yanked the lid off, eager to see what her brother had bought her for her birthday.

As she stared down at her present, Conan hoisted himself up on to the Charizard and nudged its side with his foot, silently telling it they were ready to go. The Charizard was a little angered by such treatment but was used to it and began to flap its strong wings without complaint. Tate had no idea they were leaving until the force of the wind from the Charizard's wings pushed her backwards. She ended up on the floor, gazing helplessly up as her brother flew away from her and their life in Dearborn Town on the back of a dangerous-looking Charizard.

Conan's black and green gloves had ended up in Tate's lap and as she watched the trio fly out of sight, she tugged them on to her hands as if in a daze and mouthed one word Conan had no chance of hearing from her.

_Goodbye.

* * *

_**Note: Phew! This chapter started off hilariously short and now its probably the longest chapter in this story O_o Don't fret, my little minions, this ISN'T the last chapter - although we're pretty close, let me tell you. Ah I'm too happy right now, I love texts :'D**

**P.S Who knows what's going on with the "*" and "-" as a break? Coz it won't let me do it, I had to use "/" again..  
**


	11. A Broken Home

**Note: Friggin' heck. This chapter is waaaay long. Blame xPikachu-Princessx for that, she wouldn't let me shorten it. Oh yes, because of this chapter I've decided to change the rating of this story from K+ to T. It's just a teensy bit more graphic than I had anticipated. I'd like you to know now that after this, there will be one chapter left. That's right, one.  
**

* * *

A Broken Home

"Oh god." Daphne's heart was in her mouth; her hands quivering on their own accord. As much as she wanted to, her body was incapable of moving away from the horrific scene and she couldn't look away. Daphne's body felt numb and she felt as if she wasn't part of reality. Conan's voice sounded muffled and far off, even though he was only standing next to her.

"Aw man..." Unlike Daphne, Conan had full control over his body and he demonstrated this by grabbing her shoulders almost painfully tight. The look he gave Daphne scared Amina: she had never seen him so deathly frightened. For the first time, Amina had been rendered speechless. Even she had been dramatically affected by what had just happened.

"We have to get away from here," Conan was saying to Daphne, urgency clear in his voice. Her hands lifted slowly up to her face and Daphne stared at them, seemingly confused. One was fine, still wrapped heavily in bandages after her battle with Zoe. The other...why was it dripping in glistening, fresh, red blood?

_*Two hours earlier..._

"_I love it here!"_ squealed Amina as she tucked in to her third bowl of Pokémon food that morning. Conan and Daphne shook their heads at their Pokémon, laughing at her enthusiastic appetite. The three of them had only arrived in Kanto two days prior to this but it was like they had been there for a long time. They had managed to book a room in the Pokémon Centre for the next week and were quite comfortable there. They quickly settled into a routine of sly thievery in broad daylight to keep themselves amused and practised in their line of work. A Team Rocket representative would soon meet with them and give them their official orders but until then they were free to do whatever they liked.

The town they were in at present was the smallest in all of Kanto: Lavender Town. Many locals had warned the trio about ghost sightings in the town, particularly around the House of Memories. Being a Ghost-type, Amina felt more or less welcome in the tiny town whilst the mention of ghosts and spirits pretty much unnerved Conan. Daphne didn't seem bothered by any of it and it wasn't until their first night that her teammates learned why: Daphne was originally from Lavender Town.

She had travelled a long way to see Giovanni and become a part of the peewee training programme all those months ago but now she was finally back and hardly anyone seemed to recognise her. Daphne actually preferred it that way. She was glad no-one knew her as 'Rick-and-Veronica's kid' anymore. It wasn't like she even saw herself that way. Ever since that day she had walked out on her dad, Daphne had become her own person; an independent teen. It had taken a single bus journey from Lavender to Vermillion City and it had lasted all day but look where it had got her. It had been worth it in the end.

As soon as the trio had finished eating breakfast, they retired to their room where they stocked up on a few items they might need for the day before heading out. Because Lavender Town was so small, many of the residents had already noticed that things had gone missing and as Daphne, Conan and Amina were new in town, they were instantly suspected as the culprits. The three of them knew they had to move on quickly before they were found out; however they had been instructed not to leave the town until they had received their next orders.

Daphne mentioned something about wanting to make a short visit to The Lavender Volunteer Pokémon House. It was a building constructed purely for the existence to house abandoned and orphaned Pokémon, who would be cared for by live-in members of the organisation set up by a man named Mr Fuji. Since the group had nothing better to do it was decided they would go there – if only to kill time. Daphne had an ulterior motive for wanting to go to the Volunteer House, although she kept it to herself for the time being.

As soon as they stepped inside they were hit with the powerful aroma emitting from the kitchen area and Amina felt her self become woozy. She regretted eating so much for breakfast. Off to one side was a flight of stairs and Conan guessed that up there were the rooms where the members slept. There didn't seem to be anyone around at the moment, save for the few lone Pokémon interacting quietly in the pen located at the far corner of the room. It was there that Daphne found her feet leading her and her two friends followed close behind, watching the room shiftily as if afraid of being caught at any second.

Daphne's eyes glazed over as she took in the four Pokémon mingling in a civilised manner. Each face was sad, as if knowing they had no-one who loved them but also strong, as they willed themselves to believe a better future was in store for them. A Gloom with a petal missing, a Sandshrew with a scar running along one side of its face, a Pinsir that had just one and a half white horns and an Abra with a limp – they were all horribly mismatched. Suddenly aware that they had an audience, the four lonesome Pokémon stopped their discussion and stared hopefully up at the strange faces peering down at them. Amina found herself near hysterics when it struck her how miserable their lives actually were: they were doomed to live the rest of their lives in a house for Pokémon rejects with people who didn't care enough about them to make them their own. It was so pathetic, it was funny and Amina's face broke out into a huge grin.

"_Kuh kuh kuh kuh kuh..."_ Conan rolled his eyes, thinking 'not that stupid evil laugh she's been working on'. Daphne paid Amina no attention, giving it all instead to the Sandshrew. It was gaping at her in what could only be described as a stunned way and Conan wondered why that was. Just before he could ask Daphne why she was so interested in the Sandshrew, a voice behind them made them jump. They span around, immediately on their guard.

A teenaged girl with bright orange hair, twinkling green eyes and a smattering of freckles across her long nose was standing before them. She was wearing a red and white matching top and mini skirt with long socks and red trainers. Around her neck was a red ribbon tied in a neat bow and she had equally red studded earrings. A Farfetch'd stood loyally at her side, trying to give off an air of coolness. The girl didn't look cross with them for trespassing or intruding or whatever it was they were doing. In fact, her facial expression was stuck on 'rather pleased'. Her mouth split into a wide smile which dazzled Conan immediately.

"Daphne Davies!" she shrieked, rushing forwards to embrace her. Daphne's eyes widened as she realised with a sinking feeling she had finally been recognised – and by a girl her own age, no less. The girl broke away and Daphne pretended to have no idea who the girl was. The girl let out a shrill laugh when Daphne denied ever meeting her before and pushed Daphne's shoulder playfully. Daphne glared at her. Conan was excited at the prospect of Daphne being acquainted with a girl who was the same age as them and insanely pretty, too. Amina couldn't care less.

"Daphne, you're hilarious!" the girl shrieked. She pronounced the word as 'hil-EYE-ree-ous'. "It's Kelsey, your next door neighbour since forever!" Daphne closed her eyes and slowly counted to ten in her head. She didn't want to lose her temper with Kelsey and break her other hand as a result. It was hard enough coping with just the one that was broken. Before she knew what was happening, Conan was asking to see where she and Kelsey lived and was being whisked away by Kelsey, eager to show off to the cool boy dressed all in black. Daphne cursed her luck. She had been purposefully avoiding her house ever since they arrived and now she was being dragged back there against her will. Daphne turned and got one last look at the Sandshrew whilst she still could, silently promising she'd be back.

Kelsey's home was literally like a doll's house in the sense that it was impossibly small and unrealistically dirt-free – especially as she had two little brothers. It soon became obvious why it was so clean when Kelsey led them into the kitchen. Her mum was on her hands and knees, obsessively scrubbing the floor with a soapy sponge. She was dressed from head to toe in cleaning gear: bandana to keep her hair out of the way, shimmering apron, yellow rubber gloves, old slippers and freshly washed tracksuit. Kelsey's mum barely glanced at her guests as she scrubbed away at the floor, muttering quietly to herself. Daphne, who knew Kelsey's mum well, didn't see this as weird behaviour for her. She had developed OCD when she had first become pregnant with Kelsey and now spent every moment of her waking life cleaning the house. Everyone in Lavender Town had grown used to Kelsey's mum's fixation with cleaning and hardly batted an eyelid. Amina and Conan however were completely unused to the antics of Kelsey's mum and shamelessly gawped at her as she worked hard to make the floor spotless. Daphne nudged Conan angrily and he in turn shoved Amina, snapping her out of her daze.

"_It just seems a little bit crazy. The floor's already clean – what the heck is she cleaning it for?"_ hissed Amina. Kelsey's mum appeared oblivious to what the purple Pokémon had said but Kelsey was furious. If it hadn't been for the fact that she had known Daphne for so long and was developing a fast crush on Conan, she would have thrown them all out. As it were, she ushered them out of the kitchen and into the living room. It was just as spotless as the kitchen, with not a single speck of dust to be found or magazine out of place. Conan found himself drawn to the millions of photographs sitting on two shelves stuck to the wall. One photo in particular stood out to him and he lifted the frame up to get a better look.

Younger versions of Daphne and Kelsey were standing at the front, smiling angelically at the camera in front of four adults. The orange haired ones behind Kelsey were so obviously her parents: the resemblance between them was striking. Behind Daphne were a man and woman whom Conan had to squint at to see any similarities between them. The woman had long blonde hair as curly as Daphne's green version and a pretty smile that seemed to come easily even though she looked a little thinner than was healthy. The man next to her was hugging her tightly, looking as if the smile plastered on his face was hurting him. He had short pale blue hair and behind his oval glasses was a pair of brown eyes that matched Daphne's exactly. Conan opened his mouth to ask if they were Daphne's parents but then caught sight of his partner's face and thought better of it. He could tell she wasn't enjoying the brief time they had been at Kelsey's house and Conan loyally made an excuse to leave. Kelsey seemed disappointed to see them go – especially Conan – and hugged them tightly goodbye – especially Conan. The trio then realised they had nowhere to go. Conan cleared his throat.

"You seemed awfully interested in that Sandshrew," he commented. Daphne blinked as if she had been miles away. She turned to Conan apologetically.

"Sorry, what? I was spacing out." Conan smiled at his friend.

"The Sandshrew," he repeated.

"_In the Reject House,"_ supplied Amina helpfully. Conan shot her a meaningful glare that she cheerily ignored.

"Oh. It used to be mine," was all Daphne said. No amount of complaining or coaxing could get her to expand on that and Conan had to accept that he wasn't going to know why the Sandshrew had a great big scar on its face any time soon. It was a pity too, because he was sure it was an interesting story. Amina noticed that Daphne was staring at the house next door to Kelsey's, her face contorted into a frown.

"_Want to go inside..?"_ she suggested. Daphne turned to Amina, startled. For a moment she had actually forgotten she was with her and Conan. When Daphne didn't reply, Conan asked again.

"Well, do you?" Daphne hesitated. Did she? What would it be like to be back in her house – the same one she had grown up in; that was filled with memories of her mum; that her dad had slowly been drinking himself into an early grave in? She couldn't imagine it. Daphne wondered if her dad was in there now, sloshing back yet another bottle of alcohol with reckless abandon. The odds were very high in that favour. Maybe she didn't want to go inside. It would only bring back painful memories she had tried so hard to forget.

Deciding she was taking to long to give a final answer, Conan and Amina took things into their own hands and together pushed Daphne up to the front door. She didn't protest. Conan rapped three times on the door and stepped back, waiting for it to be opened. Quickly, Daphne turned to him and Amina.

"Whatever happens, just know that I don't recognise him as my dad anymore," she said, worry spreading across her face. Not really knowing what she was talking about as Daphne hadn't said much about her family to either of them, Amina and Conan braced them selves for just about anyone to open the door. They hadn't expected Daphne's dad to be a pasty-faced middle aged man with a tangle of faded blue hair, stubble across his face and half-closed eyes behind his glasses. Conan was taken aback by how different he looked to the man in the photograph sitting in Kelsey's house. He wasn't wearing many clothes, just an old vest that had once been white but was now tinged with grey and stained yellow in places; a pair of old red boxer shorts; crumpled socks and black slippers. In his hand was a bottle of strong rum, the scent of which penetrated the noses of the two teens and caused them to gag. A smile stretched across Daphne's dad's face and his dry lips split.

"Daphne!" he cried, his breath reeking of booze. He hugged Daphne heavy-handily, accidentally clunking the back of her head with his bottle. He didn't notice. Daphne grimaced, turning to her friends to introduce him.

"Conan, Amina; this is Rick," she spat. Rick was ignorant to his daughter's blatant hostile behaviour towards him and guided them all inside. They walked through the hallway into the living room, picking their way through discarded newspapers, half-eaten foods and the like. Conan found himself liking his house a lot more than he used to. Amina mentally compared this derelict hovel with the glossy house next door. She knew which one she'd rather be in. Daphne could see the involuntary looks of disgust on their faces and couldn't honestly say she didn't agree with them. The house _was_ disgusting. What Conan's house had lacked in furniture and modern possessions, Daphne's more than made up for it. A flat screen TV hung limply from the living room wall, the screen smashed to oblivion. There was a nice-looking leather sofa opposite the television and if it wasn't for the fact that there was a huge brownish-orangey stain across it, the sofa would have been quite lovely. Underneath the litter of discarded bottles was a lush carpet that although could have done with being hovered, didn't look too threadbare.

Conan wrinkled his nose: the house ponged of alcohol. The source of the smell wasn't hard to point out as the place was a swamp of bottles in various conditions – some were brand new, others half empty and the ones that were completely drained were mostly smashed. The entire room was a playground of dangerously placed glass and Daphne and Conan were careful about where they were stepping. Neither of them wanted to end up with glass stuck in their feet.

Rick grinned stupidly at his daughter, amazed that she was home at long last. He took a swig from his bottle, gulping down the strong liquid as if it was merely water.

"I've been lonely wivvvvout you here, Daffy," said Rick, his words slurred and mumbled. Daphne fixed him with a cold stare. There had been a time after her mum had died that she thought her dad's love of alcohol was a passing fix and that he would soon be over it. It was now clear that he was going to be drinking until the day he died and darn the consequences. It didn't seem to occur to Rick that he might want to sober up to be there for his daughter who was just as upset about his wife dying as he was.

"_I don't like it here,"_ announced Amina. Rick lurched forward, towards Daphne. He grabbed her roughly by the strap of her dungarees and shook her. His warm breath was in her face and Daphne's lip curled.

"Have a drink yeah?" said Rick, trying to force the bottle of rum down her throat. Daphne struggled to get him off her, not wanting to taste the horrible drink that had ruined her dad's life. Conan stepped to them in an attempt to release Rick's hold on Daphne's clothes and with all her might Daphne pushed Rick away from her. Rick stumbled backwards and Conan quickly let go. Rick hadn't let go of Daphne's clothes and so she fell with him, falling on the other side of the room when his arm swung wildly, letting her go without warning. A nauseating crack sounded when Rick's head made contact with the side of the wooden coffee table before falling to the floor among his favourite bottles of alcohol. Conan and Amina rushed to Daphne and helped her to her feet. She had tried to break her fall using her good hand and instead managed to scrape it across a long piece of broken glass. Her hand was bleeding heavily.

Only when Daphne was steady on her feet did they turn their attention to Rick, who hadn't moved an inch since falling. Conan boldly went over to Rick and felt for a pulse. Nothing.

"Oh god," whispered Daphne.


	12. On The Run

On The Run

Conan's mind was under pressure and panicked but a plan quickly formed in his mind as they usually did. The plan would ensure Daphne stayed out of prison, although like most of the ideas that Conan came up with it was not without its risks. However they didn't have a choice. Murder was still murder, even when done by accident. The term 'manslaughter' did nothing to keep a teenager like Daphne out of the slammer and Conan couldn't let her end up there. He would do everything in his power to keep her free.

Conan eyed Rick's body warily. He was as still as stone and probably as cold as one too. Conan had never seen a dead body before and he was taking it rather well considering. The same could not be said for his comrades, however. Daphne was still in a state of daze and Conan wasn't sure that she was still with him, mentally. Amina was freaking out: rushing around the room with cries of _'ohmygod' _and _'Ican'tbelieveit!'_. As Daphne didn't look like she was going to snap out of it any time soon, Conan grabbed Amina and ran his plan by her quickly. She seemed to approve but it was hard to tell since her eyes continuously darted around the room as if she was afraid the police would jump on them at any second. Conan turned his attention back to his partner and he noticed the blood gushing out of her hand.

"Daphne? You're bleeding quite heavily. Do you have a first aid kit?" asked Conan softly. Slowly, Daphne lifted her head and looked at Conan. Her brown eyes were filled with tears that refused to fall and her face was paler than Conan had ever seen it. It took Daphne a while to realise what Conan had asked her and even longer to think of the answer. At last she nodded.

"Upstairs in the bathroom," she replied in a small voice. Conan gently nudged her in the direction she pointed him in and was soon patching up her hand, wiping the blood away with disinfectant and covering the wound with plasters. Although the disinfectant stung horribly, Daphne didn't flinch. She found it hard to feel – for lack of a better word – _real_. Daphne felt as if everything was an awful nightmare and she'd wake up any moment now.

She didn't wake up and Conan asked her if she had any spare Pokéballs in the house. She did and Conan rushed to retrieve them. He had left Amina downstairs to keep a look out in the event anyone decided to make a visit to the Davies's household. They prayed that didn't happen. The three of them gathered in the hallway by the front door and discussed what was to happen next. Daphne simply stared blankly at them as if she wasn't a part of the group. Amina wanted to know if Daphne was mentally unhinged now that she'd killed her dad. The look Conan shot her could have withered a plant.

"I'm **not** crazy. I'm in shock," defended Daphne firmly.

"_Well we'd kind of prefer you to not be in shock because we need you to be alert for the plan to work,"_ said Amina wisely. Daphne promised she'd try for the sakes of her friends. A small part of her understood the lengths they were going to for her and she was touched that they cared so much about her. They left the house. Conan had left the curtains open in the living room because he reasoned that the people on Lavender Town would be used to seeing Rick passed out with a bottle in his hand. It would be a couple of days before they realised something was wrong but by that time he, Daphne and Amina would hopefully be long gone.

They hurried back to the Pokémon Centre where they collected their things and checked out of their room. Nurse Joy was surprised to see them in such a rush to leave but didn't question it: after all, they'd paid for the rest of the week and hadn't exactly asked for a refund. What with the low amount of visitors to the town recently, the Pokémon Centre needed all the funds it could get yet Nurse Joy couldn't escape the feeling of guilt at robbing innocent teenagers' money. News quickly spread that the three were leaving and the locals heaved a great sigh of relief – they had suspected them as being thieves but had no proof to back them up. Now they were going, things would return to normal and the residents of Lavender Town could stop clutching their bags so tightly whenever they saw a person younger than twenty walk past.

The next place they went was to The Lavender Volunteer Pokémon House. Well, technically they didn't go there; they snuck around the back and to the open window above the play pen where the abandoned Pokémon were. The Gloom, Sandshrew, Pinsir and Abra were still there, interacting quietly with each other. None of them held out much hope of them ever having trainers again. Who would want a Pokémon with a petal missing; with a scar; that only had one and a half horns or walked with a limp? Kids in today's world wanted only the best of the best Pokémon so they could have the strongest team and never lose a single battle. No-one wanted to own a reject, which was precisely why Conan had decided to take all of them.

They would need a team of Pokémon where they were going and it would be hard work catching some from the wild. Stealing them from another trainer would be too dangerous as ten to one they'd get caught within the first five minutes of holding them. Pokémon that no-one wanted weren't exactly going to be reported missing, were they? Conan and Daphne sidled up to the window and from there they could see the four Pokémon beneath them. Conan gave the signal and they threw two balls each at the Pokémon. The balls shook simultaneously three times before signalling that the Pokémon had been successfully caught and returning to the throwers.

"_Someone's coming!"_ warned Amina – but it was too late. Kelsey bounded over to them and they only just had time to hide the Pokéballs. Kelsey smiled at Conan.

"So I was wondering if, you know, you're not doing anything later then maybe we can go out for dinner," she simpered, twisting a lock of hair around her finger in what she thought was a cutesy way. Conan thought of the best possible answer to get her off his back. He didn't want their cover to be blown by a cute but air-headed girl.

"Kelsey, I'm dating Daphne," he lied easily. Kelsey looked disbelieving, then surprised and then embarrassed. Her face turned as red as her clothes and Amina couldn't help thinking that at least she matched. Kelsey congratulated them both and made an excuse to 'leave them to it'. It had been a close shave. What if she had seen what they were up to and told someone? Or worse, told the police? Conan let out a sigh of relief once she was out of sight although a small part of him regretted that he couldn't have gone on a date with her. She was a stunning girl and he would have liked to have a chance at being her boyfriend. Daphne could see the hint of disappointment in her friend's eyes and put a hand on his shoulder awkwardly.

"She talks with her mouth full," informed Daphne. Conan pictured the dinner date he could have gone on with Kelsey and grinned. He wasn't going to tell Daphne that he thought Kelsey still looked beautiful with food spewing out of her mouth. He became conscious of the fact that they were running out of time and he urged Amina and Daphne to get going. He didn't want to miss their chance for escape. They walked as fast as they could without looking like they were in a rush to go anywhere until they were on Route 12. Conan and Daphne sprinted with Amina whizzing through the air close behind them. Fishermen stocked with many a Magikarp only had time to ask 'would you like to bat–' before they realised they were talking to thin air. The trio stopped for nothing and no-one. They were going so fast that they didn't notice they had missed their turning until they were fast approaching Route 13. They double backed on themselves until they caught a glimpse of Route 11 and headed up west in the direction of Vermilion City. It wasn't long before they arrived at their destination, huffing loudly but glad to be away from Lavender Town.

None of them wasted any time taking in the beautiful scenery the sea combined with the late afternoon sun provided. They made off towards the port located on the southern area of the city and were thankful to see the ship they wanted to board hadn't left the dock yet. In fact there were still people lining up to get on it. This worked even better with Conan's plan and he purposefully pushed his way through the middle of the line, rubbing up against a rather gorgeous girl who was hugging a Togepi and gazing at her reflection in a small hand-held mirror. Her burly boyfriend didn't seem to like Conan being so close to her and glared at the smaller boy menacingly, silently daring him to try anything. Conan backed off immediately, not wanting to start any trouble that would get him self noticed and returned to his friends who were now lining up at the end of the queue.

"Well?" asked Daphne, looking worried. Conan and Amina had brought her up to speed on the whole plan on their way there and now that she knew everything, she was nervous. Supposing they got caught? Or something went wrong? What if they were followed..? Conan gave her a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry: I'm a pro," he said, showing off the S.S. Anne tickets. Amina applauded his great steal and Daphne, overcome with gratitude, threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. She couldn't believe what he was doing for her. It wasn't like he couldn't just abandon her and let her deal with the consequences by herself. Conan and Amina didn't even have to be involved with Daphne anymore. Anyone else would have handed her into the authorities without thinking twice about it. She asked them if they were sure about this. Conan opened his mouth to reply but Amina got in there first.

"_Would you just shut up? We're a team which means we stick together no matter what! Jeez, I can't believe you forgot that already," _she huffed. Daphne smiled and meekly apologised to the insulted Pokémon. The line surged forward suddenly and they were that much closer to escaping.

Once everyone was on the ship – with the exception of a certain girl and boy, whose tickets had mysteriously disappeared – Daphne, Conan and Amina boarded themselves up in their cabin and braced their selves for a long journey. They weren't even sure where they were going; just that it was far from Lavender Town and Rick's body. They had a bunk bed in their cabin and Daphne was lying on the top one whilst Conan was reclining on the bottom. Amina grew bored of no-one talking during the first five minutes of their travelling and rummaged through her trainers' bags until she found their Pokéballs. She released the four Pokémon and decided to get better acquainted with them. They were now a team, after all and would be together for a long time.

It was the middle of the night and the ship was still slicing through the water. All the other boarders had gone to sleep in their cabins but Conan, Daphne and Amina were still awake. Neither of them could sleep: the image of Rick's dead body prevented that from happening. Conan had climbed on to the top bunk with Daphne and Amina had followed him. They weren't saying anything: they were simply being comforted by the presence of the two friends they had been through so much with. None of them wanted to talk about what had happened although they all knew what they were each thinking about.

Amina had gotten on well with the other Pokémon when she spoke to them earlier, especially Scar the Sandshrew. Daphne had explained that Scar had received his namesake years ago when Daphne had accidently sliced his face with a screwdriver. She had burst into tears as soon as it happened but her mum had assured her that accidents happen and Scar hadn't been too badly hurt. The scar just never faded. She had abandoned him shortly after deciding that she wanted to join Team Rocket and had left it in the so called 'Reject House' the day she left home.

On the bottom bunk, Gloom, Scar, Pinsir and Abra were snoozing softly, blissfully unaware of the turmoil going through the minds of the three personas above them. They were just grateful they had trainers to care for them once more, after believing for so long they would never again know what it felt like to be owned. The ship rocked gently from side to side as it sailed through the sea, the moon and stars the only light for miles around. On the top bunk, Daphne silently reached for Conan's hand and squeezed it. Words couldn't describe how indebted she felt to have friends as good as him and Amina. Conan imagined he understood what Daphne was trying to tell him and smiled to himself. He cleared his throat suddenly.

"We're going to have to change our names." Amina gasped loudly.

"_What? But I _like_ my name!"_ she complained. It had taken her a fairly lengthy amount of time to come up with it and she didn't much like having to think of a new one. Conan explained to her that it would be dangerous for them to go around using their real names because if the authorities ever came to suspect their involvement in Rick Davies' death, it would be easy to track them down. How many other groups of two teenagers and a Gastly had the names Daphne, Amina and Conan? Seeing that Conan had a point, Amina relented although she still didn't like having to change her name.

"You could be Verity," suggested Daphne quietly. She had had a school friend named Verity who didn't mind telling anyone and everyone that it was Latin for 'truth' – and had of course turned out to be a pathological liar. Amina considered it, saying the name out loud over and over. It wasn't bad. She decided to stick with it for now – she could always change it later on, right? Conan rolled his eyes at Amina's – Verity's – speculation and simply announced that his name from that point on would be Connor. It was similar to Conan and rather simple: he didn't want to make a big fuss about it.

Daphne mulled over using her mum's name, 'Veronica'. Somehow, Daphne didn't think she was good enough for it. Her mum had been a good-hearted, kind woman who had loved Daphne even when she didn't deserve it. There was no way Daphne could live up to such a name: the expectations were set too high. Daphne was a horrid girl; she stole, she fought and she killed. Veronica wouldn't suit her at all.

"Ronnie." It wasn't Veronica but it was a small part of it and wasn't that exactly what she was: a small part of her mum? The ship bobbed up and down as it glided across the water and three brand new additions to the world rolled over in an attempt to sleep, cuddled up to their best friends. Connor, Ronnie and Verity would need all the sleep they could get for the life that awaited them once the ship arrived at its destination. They had had to give up their dream of working for Team Rocket as field agents after they had worked so hard for it – but perhaps it was for the best. This way, they had the knowledge, intuition and training to commit any crimes they desired and wouldn't be doing it for anyone but their selves. Their life wouldn't be easy but then, whose was? It would be difficult to keep up the charade of being someone they weren't but it would grow easier over time. Maybe one day they'd even forget who they used to be, when they were comfortable with the personalities they had chosen for themselves.

And maybe Swinubs would fly.

* * *

**Note: The end :) lol, I can hear you screaming "noooooooooooo!" and "whyyyyyyyyyyy?". You'll be glad to know a sequel is being planned but it might not be out for a while...Hope you enjoyed this fic while it lasted! Your reviews/favs/alerts meant a lot to me, so thanks for liking what I write :3**


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